Return of Astronema
by PowerHero432
Summary: With Karone suffering from horrible nightmares about Astronema, Andros recommends her to go on Terra Venture and explore the universe with new people. But her past is not that easy to escape and with her dark side fighting for control, Karone must master control over her mind or fall back to the dark side.
1. Dark Dreams

**Chapter 1: Dark Dreams**

Karone awoke to find herself in a dark, red lit room, on the floor. She slowly gained conscious and pushed herself up off the ground. The room was small but had a large window looking out into the blackness of space. She felt like she knew this place, but couldn't place it and looked around until she remembered that there was a door opposite the window.  
Slowly she reached up and pressed the palm of her hand against the wall and the door slide open. Curiosity took hold and Karone stepped forward through the door, wondering along the empty black corridors trying to find any indication of where she was. She had no idea what she was looking for but she felt that she was getting closer as she walked through the twisting corridors.  
Up a head Karone could hear the sound of steel on steel, a fight perhaps. As she got closer she began to make out grunts of the two fighting, one male, the other a woman. She exited the corridor and into a large open room where the two were fighting.  
The male was covered in red spandex with white gloves and boots and a red helmet to top it off. In his hand was his weapon, a spiral drill head, thinned out to be like a sword and attached to a handle. The female was covered in black leather with thin metal padding over parts of her chest and arm gauntlets that started at her wrist and moved half way up to her elbow, with blades sticking out. Across her forehead was a metal headband which vanished behind her long wavy purple hair that flowed through the air gracefully as she fought with her long staff, attached to a red diamond blade at the tip.  
After a few seconds it was obvious to Karone that the woman was winning this fight. She was striking hard and fast with her staff while the man in red continually retreated, constantly on the defence, almost unwilling to fight. After a strong blow she knocked the red man's spiral sword from his side and then struck quickly across his chest, sparks flew from where she'd hit him as he fell to the ground. The woman was victorious, but not finished. She advanced on the red man, who attempted to crawl towards his sword. The woman stomped down on his hand with her black heeled shoes, stopping him from reaching his weapon which she then proceeded to kick across the room. Rolling over onto his back, the red man looked up at his enemy, who stood over him like a god, pointing her staff at his throat.  
It was then it hit Karone. She was on the 'Dark Fortress' during her final assault on Earth, and she was fighting the Red ranger. Her brother. Then the woman, Astronema, looked over to her, as if she'd know Karone was there all along, and let out a pure evil smile. She then returned her gaze to the Red Ranger and pierced his chest with her staff.  
"NNNNNOOOOO!" shouted Karone running over to her now dead brother. Sadly before she could reach him he faded away, but she couldn't slow down and Astronema easily knocked her down. Looking up at her evil self, she now knew what it must have felt like for her brother a few moments ago. Smiling, Astronema aimed her staff at Karone, just as she had with the Red ranger.  
"Please..." begged Karone, but that only made Astronema laugh.  
"Oh Karone. I don't want to kill you. I want to help you" explained Astronema positioning her staff above Karone's forehead. With a shot of purple energy from the tip of her staff, Karone suddenly lost all feeling in her body.  
"Up you get" teased Astronema raising her staff which in turn caused Karone to get up, the purple energy connecting from Karone's head to Astronema's staff allowing her to control Karone. Astronema then manoeuvred Karone over to the control consol of the Dark Fortress. "Now, let's do what we should have done when we first got here" said Astronema with a wide evil smile as she made Karone press a button on the consol. A huge laser then shot out of the Dark Fortress hitting the Earth and instantly causing it exploded.  
Karone was speechless; she'd gone num all over and dropped to her knees. She'd gained control off her body again but she no longer cared. Looking down at herself it took her a while to realise that she now looked like Astronema, after the realisation came, the uncontrollable evil smile formed on her face shortly followed by the laugh. But on the inside Karone was crying, as her Astronema body rose up laughing victoriously at the destruction of Earth.

Karone awoke screaming as she lunched up into a sitting position on her bed.  
"NO PLEASE!" shouted Karone in a panic, not realising it was only a dream. While she continued to shout "NO! NO! NO!"" she curled up into a ball on her bed, closing her eyes tight.  
"Karone" came the sound of Andros calling to her from outside her room as she continued to shout.  
"HELP ME! PLEASE!" begged Karone, as Andros came into the room he quickly moved to his little sister's side on the bed to comfort her.  
"Karone. Karone!" said Andros trying to get her to calm down as he rocked her back and forth, hugging her. After a moment Karone stopped shouting and started to take deep breaths, still breathing heavily in a panicked state.  
Once she was ready Andros helped her get up before he crawled over to the other side of the bed. The two then crossed their legs and sat up facing each other.  
"So what happened?" asked Andros watching his sister carefully.  
"It... It was another... Another dream" Karone said, her voice shaking all the while, still terrified by what she'd seen. Andros looked at her and motioned for her to continue. "It was Astronema, she... she... killed you... I killed you" finished Karone, avoiding her brother's eyes. Andros responded quickly by reaching out and put his hand on hers, but Karone pulled away instantly.  
"Karone, it was only a dream. I'm still here" said Andros with a reassuring smile, but it wasn't enough for her.  
"Andros I'm scared" she confessed looking into his eyes, so he knew she meant it.  
"Of what" asked her brother confused.  
"Astronema. I feel like she's still a part of me" Andros was shocked for a moment but managed to find the words to respond to her.  
"Astronema is gone. She was a lie. You're the real you now-"  
"But she's not gone!" interrupted Karone in protest. "She's still in here" she said tapping the side of her head. For a while the two sat in silence, it was Andros who eventually broke the silence with an idea.  
"You know what, I think it's time you went out and saw the universe" suggested Andros, to which Karone looked at him with shock.  
"Andros I don't think now is the time to-" started Karone but was stopped by Andros.  
"I think it is the time. You need to get away from me and the others for a bit. Leave the past in the past for a while and explore the universe"  
"I have seen the univers" pointed out Karone, pain in her eye at the memories, "As Astronema remember?"  
"Yes but not as Karone and I've heard that there's a Space Station that is set to leave from Earth. It's going to find out if there are any other planets that are liveable in this universe. It's going places neither of us have ever been" explained Andros. Karone had to admit the idea wasn't horrible, but she wasn't found of leaving her brother after only just getting him back. Then again maybe a get away from him would give her a chance to forget her past and stop her horrible dreams. Also it would be a good idea to go ad visit some new planets without them having met Astronema.  
"What do you think?"  
"I guess I could give it a shot. But only if you agree to come get me if I call" said Karone with a small smile.  
"Deal" said Andros instantly before the two smiled at each other and embraced.


	2. Terra Venture

**Chapter 2: Terra Venture**

Karone couldn't help but awe at the view from the shuttle as it flew out of Earth's atmosphere. The sight for the magnificent blue sphere with its blots green and yellow, no one could deny it was a once in a light time sight for some. True she had seen it many times from the Dark Fortress but now she could appreciate it for what it was. This was a world of bueaty, not one for conquering. The rest of the ship also seemed to bring the reaction out from inside her, peer pressure perhaps, either way she now realised what a sight this was.  
Karone was the first to stop looking out the window, after all unlike the rest of the ship she had seen it before. She was at the back of the shuttle and could see everyone on the ship. When she first got on the shuttle she'd played a game in her head where she had made up life stories for everyone on board, oddly she felt like she knew them all now.  
For the occasion Karone had gone with a black leather vest and pants, with heeled boots that reached halfway up her legs. She had put on a sliver choker and matching bracelets rather than wear her locket, which had the picture of her and Andros as children in it. She will always love and treasure it, but wearing it only reminded her of Astronema rather than Andros.  
Suddenly a young man in red shirt and black hair brushed past her holding a bag.  
"Sorry" he said before moving on down the shuttle to an open seat. As he sat down Karone couldn't help but notice that he hadn't been on the ship at lunch, was he a stowaway. No one else seemed to notice or care so she shrugged it off and enjoyed the rest of the flight.

Upon arrival Karone and the rest of the passengers exited the shuttle and where guided to large structure, resembling an airport. Walking out of the long corridor she spotted two grown men, one old the other fat, crying and hugging each other.  
Ignoring the two she continued on, spotting the man that had bumped into her up ahead. Still unsure of him she kept her distance behind him, following him down the escalator. It was then two guards from below shouted and pointed at the man in front of her. In a panic the man jumped over the escalator and ran back up the way he'd came. Intrigued by the man Karone decided to follow, hoping to find an adventure perhaps with this guy. She jumped over to the other side of the escalator also, cutting off the guards that were in pursuit of him and now her.  
She followed him through the building, losing the guards easily in the process, before finally catching up to him. She grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around to face her.  
"Hang on a minute" said Karone staring intently at the man.  
"You're not a guard" pointed out the man.  
"No but I'd like to talk" explained Karone still holding onto his shoulder.  
"Maybe later I'm busy" said the man pushing Karone's arm of his shoulder before turning to leave, but he ended up walking into a young blond woman wearing battle gear. Both fell to the ground and Karone let out a giggle. The man glared back at her and she stopped, but continued to smile. She helped him up and both then helped up the girl he'd knocked over.  
"Hi" said the girl looking into the man's eyes and he responded with the same answer. For a moment the two stared at each other as if they'd just found true love. Karone was about to make a joke but was cut off by a man, in similar battle gear to the girl, who stepped in between the red shirted man and the girl.  
"Back off" said man glaring angrily at the other. The stowaway was about to start an argument with him but then noticed guards heading his way and ran.  
"Sorry about him" said Karone before running after him. They continued running for a while before the stowaway spotted the guards gradually surrounding him from all sides. He would have been caught if Karone hadn't grabbed his arm and dragged him towards a helmet rack. She grabbed one helmet and tossed it to the man before grabbing one herself.  
"Smart" said the man approvingly, but Karone had no time to respond and dragged him behind a wall where they quickly changed into battle gear, to blend in. They walked out past the guards, who were completely unaware of them. The two grinned at each other but their victory was short lived when the Commander spotted them.  
"Where do you two think you're going?" shouted the Commander causing both to freeze. "Get in line" he ordered and the two fell in behind the line of soldiers that was marching through the building, back out to the landing platforms.

It wasn't long until they were on one of many shuttles filled with soldiers, sitting side by side, flying to the moon. With nothing else to do but wait to be caught, Karone turned to the stowaway and began chatting to him.  
"So what's your name?" asked Karone, the stowaway looked at her a moment, considering whether to answer or not.  
"Leo," he finally said "and you?"  
"Karone" she answered. The two smiled at each other before a soldier dropped a blaster on Leo's lap and then Karones. "What are these for?" whispered Karone to Leo, so no one over heard.  
"I don't know" answered Leo just as a voice came over the intercom.  
"Prepare for landing" and with that everyone started strapping in, including Karone and Leo.  
After a surprisingly quick landing the whole ship was rushed out into a battle simulation. Karone and Leo followed a small group around to the back of a small hill, which provided cover for them. It was then Karone realised that the man in charge of the group was the man who'd been with the girl Leo bumped into. She nudged Leo and indicated to the two from before and both ducked, hiding their faces.  
"Alright, Kendrix and you two" ordered the man pointing at Karone and Leo "stay here. The rest with me" ordered the man running out screaming with the rest of the soldiers. While Leo and Kendrix waited for further orders, Karone looked back to see a bomb behind them.  
"Leo!" shouted Karone in a panic, both Leo and Kendrix turned back to see the bomb also.  
"Move!" shouted Leo dropping his gun and grabbing Karone and Kendrix by their arms' and pulling them with him. They ran over the hill and jumped in the air as the bomb went off behind them sending them towards the ground.  
After recovering the trio removed their helmets and it was then that Kendrix realised who Leo and Karone were.  
"It's you two" she said as her friend came running over shouting her name.  
"Kendrix! Kendrix are you ok?" asked the man in a panic hugging her. He then spotted Leo and his expression changed from panic to anger.  
"You, you're the stowaway" he says angrily pushing Leo back.  
"Hey calm down" said Karone getting between Leo and the man.  
"Kai stop" pleaded Kendrix grabbing his arm. Another soldier then came running over the towards them, to find out what all the arguing was about.  
"What's going on? Are you guys ok?" he asked in a commanding tone as he examined the situation. As he slowly looked from face to face, his turned to shock when he saw Leo. "Leo?" said the soldier in confusion.  
"You know him Mike?" asked Kai still enraged with Leo.  
"Of course I know him, he's little brother" confessed Mike, and everyone turned to Leo. Mike grabbed his brother and pushed him away from the group to try and talk in privet. "I told you not to come" said Mike keeping his voice down and under control.  
"Why shouldn't I!" shouted Leo so everyone could hear, "Why do you get to go and see the universe but I don't?" asked Leo.  
"This isn't a game Leo" warned Mike still trying to keep his cool. Leo was about to continue his argument when a portal opened up at the top of the hill and a girl came out, rolling down. She came to a stop by Mike and Leo who looked at her confused; she in turn looked back up at them. She slowly got to her feet and looked around at the group before making an attempt to run away, but Leo and Mike were faster and managed to grab her.  
"Hold on a second" said Mike as he and Leo held the girl, trying to calm her down. She managed to break free of their grip but didn't runaway as Karone, Kendrix and Kai had surrounded her.  
"Where'd you come from?" asked Karone concerned but the girl stepped back from her, her face showing her fear.  
Before anyone could say anything else three strange creatures came through the glowing green portal. They looked like bugs but humanoid in shape. Mike and Leo stepped in front of the girl and adopted a fighting stance. One of the bugs easily knocked both of them aside, while the other two blocked Karone, Kendrix and Kai from assisting. The creature went to grab the girl but Mike and Leo weren't done. Both got up quickly and charged at the creature trying to tackle it to the ground. But it was to strong and threw them round into the girl. With the other two distracted Kai and Kendrix both charged and tackled one of the bugs to the ground. Its partner went to assist but Karone stepped in between them. The bug then took a step back unsure of whether to attack or not. Did it know who she was, wondered Karone.  
She pushed the thought from her mind and advanced on the creature attacking with a fast round house kick. The bug took the hit and rolled away towards the other two to regroup. Karone and the others did the same, surrounding the girl so that the bugs couldn't get near her.  
But rather than attack, the bug that Karone had hit looked as if it was talking to the other two. The three creatures then jumped into the air and curled up as wings shot out of their backs. Within seconds they were back through the portal and the group let their guard down.  
"Who are you?" asked Mike as he and the others turned to face the girl.  
"I'm Mia" she said, sounding unsure of herself. "My home planet Mirinoi is under attck-" she froze as if she'd only just realised the words that had come out of her mouth. She started walking but stopped when Kendrix asked "Where are you going?"  
"I have to go back and stop Scorpius from getting the Quasar Sabers" stated Mia, as if it were her duty or destiny.  
"But why?" asked Karone. Mia didn't respond, but did stare at Karone, fear in her eyes.  
"Who cares, we've got to help her" pointed out Leo as he walked towards the portal, however Mike pulled him back stopping him.  
"We'll help her. You're staying here" said Mike in his authoritative tone, "So are you" continued Mike pointing at Karone. "Kai you stay with them while me and Kendrix go through and help the girl" Kai nodded and moved in between Karone and Leo so he could grab either of them if they tried anything. "We'll be back soon" promised Mike as he and Kendrix followed Mia through the portal to what seemed to be a forest on the other side.  
"Come on" said Kai pushing Leo ahead of him, while he walked beside Karone, his mistake was focusing too much on Leo. Before Kai could react, Karone had already spun quickly on her foot and hit Kai hard in the leg tripping him up.  
"Let's go" said Karone to Leo as she ran for the portal with Leo close behind.  
"Wait!" was the last thing either of them heard as the jumped through the portal, which snapped shut behind them.


	3. Quasar Sabers

**Chapter 3: The Quasar Sabers**

When Karone opened her eyes, she and Leo were on the dirt forest floor. She looked over to Leo who was getting up and looking around. Karone also got off the ground and looked back to see that the portal had vanished.  
"Looks like we got through just in time" pointed out Leo smiling at her. Karone smiled back as Leo helped her up. Karone could feel the adrenalin rushing through her body, and she loved it. She and Leo then walked through the forest for a while trying to track the others. "Where are we?" asked Leo thinking allowed.  
"Mirinoi, at a guess. That is where Maya said she was from" suggested Karone.  
"Speaking off, I wondered where she and my brother got to?" questioned Leo looking for any sign of them, footprints, broken branches, anything. Unfortunately he spotted something worse, more of the bug creatures, he pulled Karone down to ducking level with him so they wouldn't be spotted.  
"What is it?" asked Karone, who hadn't seen the bugs. Leo lead her around the creatures so that they were behind them and then pointed them out to Karone.  
"There's only four of them, I think we can take them" said Leo confidently, readying himself to attack. But Karone held him back with a concerned look.  
"I think we should keep moving" suggested Karone, backing away. Annoyingly Leo didn't follow, but instead charged out towards the creatures. The four creatures turned around to face Leo and the closest easily flipped Leo over. Leo landed hard on the his back, surrounded by the four bugs.  
"Idiot" muttered Karone before emerging from the bushes. "HEY!" she shouted, attracting the attention of the bugs. Three of the bugs held back but one seemed confident and charge at Karone. She saw the creatures arm coming and ducked under his swift swing. When the creature tried again Karone caught it's arm and then threw him around into the tree behind her.  
"Who's next" she said grinning. Even though she hated herself for it, she was enjoying herself. She could almost sense the fear in the creatures as the stepped back from Leo. Karone stepped forward and snarled at the creatures which sent them running into the forest.  
With the bugs gone, Karone rushed to Leo's side and helped him up.  
"You ok?" asked Karone as Leo checked himself over.  
"I'm good" he stopped for a moment before continuing, "Wonder what their problem was?" Karone knew why, but she wasn't going to tell Leo about her past. Not yet anyway.  
"Don't know. Let's keep moving" said Karone pulling Leo with her.

Back on Terra Venture Kai was feeling guilty about letting Leo and Karone go through the portal after the others. But he was also annoyed at himself for benign to scared to follow them. He had now finally worked up the courage to go after them, but he needed a ship.  
For a while he'd wondered around hoping to find an answer to his problem, surprisingly he did when he stepped on a flier for the 'Astro Mega Ship' the one the Space Rangers had used when they battled Astronema. That was his answer, with that ship he'd be able to go through the portal and help the others get back.  
He ran there as fast as he could and then told everyone they had to leave as they were "closing early". Once everyone left a black bold man in green jumpsuit came onto the bridge of the ship.  
"What's going on?" asked the man as he cleaned his hands with a cloth.  
"I'm taking this ship out" stated Kai as he plotted in the coordinates of the portal that had appeared in space near Terra Venture.  
"I don't think so. I'm Damon mechanic of this ship and I'm telling in you. It's in no shape to fly" explained Damon approaching the controls where Kai stood.  
"Look, I need this ship. So either help me or get off" said Kai rudely.  
"Fine, I'm gone" said Damon, annoyed as he walked off.  
Kai shook his head angrily and began pressing buttons, before he knew what was going on alarms started going off and red lights were flashing all around him. Kai panicked and stepped away from the controls, having no idea of what to do. Luckily Damon came rushing back in and restored the ship to normal.  
"Thanks" said Kai gratefully.  
"I know I'm going to regret this" mutter Damon to himself before taking the ship off and flying it out towards the portal.

It had now been nearly an hour since Karone and Leo had arrived on this planet and they were no closer to finding the others. Leo was marching ahead and Karone was following behind, looking behind every so often to make sure they weren't being followed. She couldn't explain it but she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her.  
Suddenly Karone felt a sharp pain in her head and was forced to stop and gather her balance. Just as the pain faded it seemed to come back even worse than before. Karone couldn't hold her balance and feel to her knees as the pain stopped, but now her ears were ringing.  
Upon looking back Leo noticed her on the ground and walked back to help her up.  
"You ok?" he asked holding her hand encase she fell back down.  
"Ye, just a headache that's all" said Karone rubbing the side of her head.  
"You want to rest for a bit?"  
"No I'm fine" said Karone pushing on with Leo close behind. Suddenily the two were grabbed from behind and pulled back into the bushes with hands over their mouths. The two struggled but couldn't escape.  
"Hey, hey, hey! It's us" said Mike, letting the two calm down before he and Kendrix realised them. Karone looked back at Kendrix who gave her a soft smile, Karone responded the same, looking behind her she spot Maya leaning against a tree. However the girl seemed to look away when Karone made eye contact, almost scared of her.  
"What's with the-" started Leo but was silenced by Mike who put a finger to Leo's lips. A few seconds later a large group of the bug creatures went by, passing the group who remained hidden in the bushes. It didn't take long for them to pass and once they did Mike leaned in towards Leo.  
"I told you not to follow us" he said angrily but keeping his voice low as not to attract attention.  
"And what did you expect me to do? Wait on the moon for you to come back?" questioned Leo.  
"We've not got time for this, come on" said Mike standing up out of the bushes, with the rest following him. "Maya, which way to the village?" Mike asked.  
"This way" said Maya as she dashed off, the others following her as quickly as they could. As they ran they could hear screams up ahead, at this point Maya had ran on a head. The group burst into and opening were Maya now stood facing a red armoured creature with grey skin and yellow pointy hair with a large and deadly looking sword. The creature looked as if he was about to attack Maya but stopped when Mike shouted at him. The five regrouped in front of the village people, facing off against the red armoured creature and more of the bug creatures.  
"Leave these people along" ordered Mike, to which the leader of the bugs laughed.  
"And who's going to stop me. The five of you!" said the creature mockingly.  
"You mean seven" shouted Kai as he and Damon made their way through the crowd to join the others.  
"It doesn't matter how many of you there are. Scorpius wants those Quasar Sabers and I, Furio, will not fail him. Sting Wingers, attack!" ordered Furio and the bugs charged. Karone and the others spread out to try and hold back the Sting Wingers. Two came at karone which she easily handled with a flip in the air and an air punch and kick while she spun. Landing smoothly a third came lunging at her. She leaned back narrowly avoiding its swiping stinger and then came forwards at full force with a punch that sent the Sting Winger back. Two came from her sides so she cart wheeled forward and the two ran into each other knocking one another out.  
It was quickly becoming obvious to Karone that they were out matched against the Sting Wingers. Even with her fighting expertise, she couldn't take all of these things on by herself. She wasn't powerful enough, but she knew who was.  
While one Sting Winger ran at her she kicked another behind her and then swung at the charging Sting Winger flipping it back over itself. Two more appeared and swung their stingers at her from behind, Karone ducked under them and elegantly slide behind them. Then grabbing their heads she smashed them together.  
Furio had been watching the humans fight but he was most interested in Karone. She hadn't been hit once by a Sting Winger and was fighting as if it were her nature, unlike any human he'd ever seen actually. There was something about her and Furio wanted to know what it was.  
Deciding to get in on the action, Furio jumped towards Karone, who he quickly sent into a nearby tree trunk with one punch. The punch had taken her breath away but she had to get back up. Karone managed to pull herself up using the tree trunk and leaned on it for a moment while Furio advanced on her. He swung at her violently with his sword, but Karone quickly ducked and the sword cut deep into the tree. As the creature tried to remove his sword Karone saw an opening. She kicked the creature's hand holding the sword forcing him to let go and then continued through with a spin before kicking him in the head with her other foot. He stumbled back and Karone took the chance to pull out his sword and use it as her own. It was heavy but Karone was strong enough to hold it, but she wouldn't be making any quick attacks with it.  
"Impressive" admitted Furio looking at Karone, who didn't notice a Sting Winger sneaking up on her. Before she knew what was happening she was slashed across the back, swiftly followed by a gut punch from Furio. As she flew through the air she lost grip of the sword and hit the ground hard, rolling on into a tree. Lying on the ground all Karone could do was watch, clutching her wounded chest, as Furio picked up his sword.  
"You know for a second I thought you would be a worthy opponent" said Furio before letting out a mocking laugh. Karone stared at Furio trying to figure out a weakness, but she couldn't spot one. It was irritating her that after all those years of being Astronema that she couldn't beat one bad guy with a sword. Maybe if she used her powers.  
But all thoughts vanished from her mind when a sudden flash of red came into view. Everyone turned to Mike who had pulled some kind of sword form a rock, were only four remained. "What!" shouted Furio, who had forgotten about Karone and was now advancing on Mike. Too weak from the small beating she'd just taken to do anything, Karone sat herself against the tree trunk and its roots.  
Furio went to attack Mike with his sword and Mike easily blocked with his. What was unexpected was that when the swords clashed, Mike's realised a burst of energy that sent the creature backwards, skidding across the ground towards his army of Sting Wingers. While the others joined him Leo rushed to Karone's side.  
"How you doing?" he asked bending down next to her.  
"Not too bad" said Karone, which was true compared to what she had gone through with most of her life. Leo smiled at her and Karone smiled back, allowing him to help her up. They then watched as Kai, Damon, Maya and Kendrix removed the other four swords which followed the blue, green, yellow and pink lights flash as each sword was removed. There was a moment of AWE before Furio interrupted.  
"If I can't have then Quasar Sabers, then no one can!" he shouted in frustration as he pierced the ground with his blade. Then it was as if a wave of energy came flooding out of his sword that suddenly turned everyone and everything it touched to stone.  
"Move" ordered Leo as he and Karone ran around the wave of energy that was turning everything to stone and regrouped with the others. Quickly the group came to the decision that it was time to leave, moving as fast as they could, the group made their way through the village and into the forest. Just when they thought they'd out run the wave, they entered an opening were out of now where Furio and his army of Sting Wingers appeared.  
"Leaving so soon" mocked Furio before he once again struck the ground with his blade, this time causing the ground to separate. Before the crack could reach them, Mike shoved everyone out of the way but as he tried to save himself he fell into the large hole. Leo rushed to his brother while the others got cut off by the Sting Wingers and attempted to fight their way through.  
Leo dropped to his stomach and reached down trying to grab hold of his brother's arm.  
"Grab my hand" said Leo, but Mike was out of his reach.  
"I can't reach. Here take the saber" said Mike holding up the saber for Leo to grab.  
"Are you crazy?" asked Leo unwilling to let his brother commit suicide.  
"Leo... I'm not going to make it" admitted Mike with sorrow in his eyes.  
"Don't say that!" snapped Leo, unwilling to accept what his brother was telling him. "Drop the saber and grab my hand" he said firmly.  
"Leo, this saber... it's more important than me" said Mike holding out the saber again for Leo to grab. "You have to protect it"  
"But what about you!" Leo said with tears in his eyes. The ground was closing up and Mike knew he was running out of time.  
"Leo... I know I didn't always show it. But I am proud of you. Now please, for me, take the saber" Mike said as he threw the saber to Leo. Leo caught it instantly but before he had a chance to react Mike lost his grip and vanished into the ground which closed over him.  
"MIKE!" shouted some of the others will the rest shouted "NO!" in protest as they tried to get past the Sting Wingers to Leo. As for Karone she was speechless. She thought she'd left all this behind her, the pain, the suffering... the death. But it was beginning to feel like evil would follow her no matter where she went.  
"Who's next?" mocked Furio with a laugh as Leo rose up from the ground holding the Quasar Saber in his hand. The rest of the group joined up with Leo holding their individual Quasar Sabers in hand, ready to fight. "Let's see what you've got then" said Furio provoking them to fight. Leo then raised his Quasar Saber up above him and the others followed him and then colourful bolts of lightning came down hitting each of the sabers. As the rainbow flash vanished, they appeared. Not as they were but now as Power Rangers. The five shouted in unison "IYA" and struck battle possesses, ready to fight.  
Karone had to admit that seeing the Power Rangers inside her had mixed feelings. On one hand it brought her hope and happiness, on the other it just brought back the memories of her trying to destroy them. Ultimatily she was happy to have them here, to save the day like they always did.  
As the Rangers engaged their enemy in combat, Karone was unsure as what to do. From what she was seeing they seemed to have it under control, apart from maybe Leo who was trying to take on Furio all by himself. They would be evenly matched Karone thought, but Leo was putting too much rage into his attacks and missing while leaving himself venerable.  
Karone tried to help but was cut off by the wave of energy that was turning everything to stone. Separated from her friends she had no choice but run into the forest and attempt to regroup with them.  
Running as fast as she could through the woods, Karone came across an elderly man who had tripped up. She jumped past him hearing him call for help. She stopped a few feet away from him and looked back at him, watching the wave getting closer and closer.  
"Please" begged the man reaching out towards her. Karone wanted to help, but something inside her was telling her not to. She reached out with her hand but her feet wouldn't move. She just stood, holding out her hand as the wave reached up behind the old man and turned his feet to stone. It was too late. The last thing the man saw was Karone turning and fleeing leaving him to turn to stone.  
Never looking back she ran with the wave behind her until she ran into Leo, who grabbed her.  
"Karone? Karone calm down" said Leo holding her face in his hands, she was clearly distressed and he was trying to calm her down.  
"I-I-I was going to help you, when-when the wave came and-and-and then there was the old man. Oh God that poor man" said Karone suddenly realising what she had done, leaving the man to die.  
"Come on, we've got to keep move" said Leo pulling Karone with him as he ran towards the other Rangers. The group then ran through the forest until they reached the Mega Ship, which took Karone by surprise.  
"Where did you find this?" asked Karone as they got onto the ship.  
"At a museum" answered Damon as he readied the ship for takeoff.  
"But this is my brother's" said Karone.  
"You brother's?" questioned Kai and everyone turned to her. Karone then realised she'd let her secret slip. Luckily everyone lost focus when the ship lifted off the ground and flew into space.  
"The portal's closing!" pointed out Kendrix in a panic, Damon put the ship on full speed and they barely managed to scrap through the portal as it closed behind them. They had made it, they were safe. For now at least, thought Karone as the ship returned to Terra Venture.  
It seemed her friends had forgotten about her little slip up as they didn't question her on why this was her brother's ship. That wasn't what was bothering Karone, it was the fact that she'd left the old man. She replayed it in her head, she watched as she stood and watched, not moving. What had been holding her back, Karone wondered. She had an idea but she was to afraid to admit it to herself. On the off chance it was true.

As the Mega ship returned to Terra Venture, it's broken scanners had no chance of picking up the ship behind it. The Scorpion Stinger, an alien ship shaped like a centipede with hors at the head and crescent moon tail. It moved through space similar to the way a real centipede moved on earth.  
On board Furio was kneeling before a large orange skinned bug type creature, it's many eyes staring back at him as it lay on a large circular chair.  
"We've tracked the Rangers through the portal Scorpius" said Furio, looking up at him like a peasant would to a king.  
"Excellent. Now, prepare to attack" ordered Scorpius to which Furio nodded and existed. He hadn't told Scorpius about Karone, he just knew there was something about that girl. Something dark which he could exploit. Perhaps he could use her to get the Quasar Sabers, either way his priority was to retrieve the Quasar Sabers and destroy the Rangers.


	4. Line of Defence

**Chapter 4: Line of Defence**

It had been two days since the Karone and the others had returned from Mirinoi with the five Quasar Sabers and things had been fairly quiet. Kendrix had allowed Maya to sleep in her apartment since she was illegally on Terra Venture, while Leo was crashing with Kai and Damon who had moved in together. As for Karone she had her own place assigned to her and as much as she liked her new friends, she did enjoy her alone time.  
Since she was a guest on Terra venture, thanks to her brother, she had no assigned duties. So the last two days for her had been unpacking and relaxing. However now she was getting bored and with most of her friends working she had no one to talk to. She had checked Leo and Maya's rooms but they were nowhere to be found. Having nothing better to do she decided to go for a walk.  
Karone, like most of Terra Venture's inhabitants, lived in the main city located in the largest dome on the ship. She had not had a chance to go and investigate the other domes yet, but she had heard that they each contained an environment from earth. Mountains, beaches, forests and so on. For now though she was stuck in the main dome, the city, without a car.  
She found herself wondering through the largely open streets of the city looking around. She couldn't help but be impressed by how they'd managed to make it feel so similar to Earth. There were shops, restaurants, cars, parks. She'd even heard there was an old fashioned market somewhere. She wasn't looking for anything in particular at the moment but it was nice that there was verity. Looking through shop windows, nothing seemed to catch her eye so she continued walking at a leisurely pace down the street  
Eventually Karone found a park, its tall grass reaching up over her shoes. The plants were larger than on earth with thin trees that provided little to no shade, not that anyone needed it. The ship's domes all had automatic tempter settings that were controlled from the command centre.  
The park had a clear path through, however planets had started to grow over it already. Karone thought about telling Kendrix but she saw little point in complaining. What with her new powers as well as a full time job in the command centre, she knew Kendrix would be busy.  
As Karone walked through she spotted Mia and Leo water planets. Since they hadn't spotted her, Karone thought it'd be fun to give them a scare and moved behind them quietly as not to draw their attention. As she got closer Mia started to water a plant with Leo and then Karone jumped at them and screamed as loud as she could. Leo dropped his water can and jumped around to see who it was, but Mia didn't seemed to be phased by it.  
"What the-" said Leo still startled. Bending over as he caught his breath, he then stood back up smiling at Karone. The two laughed at one another but Mia seemed like she was somewhere else.  
"Mia" said Karone concerned as she putted her hand on her shoulder. Instantly Mia spun around and swung at Karone with the watering can. Luckily Karone saw it coming, and thanks to Astronema's training, she ducked under it and came back up in a fighting stance. She was ready for a fight but then Mia seemed to snap out of it and dropped the water can.  
"You ok?" asked Leo putting a hand on Maya's shoulder. When she shook her head Karone knew it was ok to let down her guard and lowered her fists. "What is it?" continued Leo.  
"Didn't you hear them?" asked Maya confused with him.  
"Hear what?"asked Leo.  
"The animals?" said Maya looking at him wide eyed, but all Leo could do was respond with a shake of the head. Maya then looked to Karone to back her up, but she answered the same as Leo, shaking her head. At this point Maya lifted her morpher to her mouth and pressed down on the communication's button.  
"Damon can you meet me and Leo at the park?" asked Maya as she began walking.  
"Sure, everything ok?" asked Damon.  
"No" said Maya closing the communication's line as she walked with Leo and Karone behind her.

While they waited for Damon to arrive Leo and Karone continued to question Maya about the animal cries she claimed to have heard.  
"Are you sure?" asked Leo for the seventh time, as Damon pulled up in the small cars. The only cars on Terra Venture were small two seaters, since people could get to most places by walking or the underground train network.  
"What's the problem?" asked Damon as he got out the car and followed an angry Maya as she stormed towards the landing bay, where they'd hidden the Mega ship.  
"Maya thinks-" started Leo but Maya quickly cut in.  
"I did hear the animals" snapped Maya as they kept walking.  
"What animals?" asked Damon confused and awaiting someone to inform him on what had happened.  
"Maya says she heard animals cry out in pain" explained Karone from the back of the group.  
"Then why are we heading to the landing bay, there won't be any animals there" said Damon.  
"They're not on Terra Venture" said Maya as they entered the building.  
"What?" said Damon, now even more confused than when he entered the conversation.  
"Is the Mega ship ready?" asked Leo.  
"The Mega ship? Look before we go I just want to tell you that the navigation is fried, the shields aren't repaired, the engine barely works-" Damon listed a many of the faults with the ship as he could before Maya interrupted him.  
"I know where we're going" said Maya as she typed in the access code to the Mega ship and the doors opened. The four stepped inside and the doors closed behind them as they entered the bridge of the ship. Each of them set to work so that the ship would be ready for takeoff.  
Once they were nearly ready, Leo decided to call Kai and Kendrix who were in Terra Venture's command centre.

"What do you MEAN you're leaving?" asked Kai irritated with Leo's rash decision.  
"We won't be long" pointed out Leo "We're just going to check on these animals Maya heard and then we'll be right back"  
"Right back. And how do you plan on getting back if the Navigation isn't working" snapped Kai furiously.  
"Seriously Leo, I don't think you've thought this through at all" said a concerned Kendrix.  
"She's right" cut in Kai, letting his opinion of Leo well known. "There are protocols to follow. Not to mention you're bringing Karone"  
"What's wrong with bringing me?" asked Karone from across the room at the sound of her name.  
"No offence, but you're just a civilian, we're the ones with the power" admitted Kai.  
"I agree" said Maya rather quickly, "I don't think it's safe for you"  
"Why not?" asked Karone folding her arms and glaring at Maya.  
"We can defend ourselves. You can't" pointed out Maya, thinking she was in the right.  
"I KNOW how to defend myself" said Karone stepping towards Maya.  
"It doesn't matter anyway cause none of you are going anywhere" said Kai jumping back into the argument.  
"Just for the record, I agree with Kai" piped up Damon which got him a glare from everyone on the ship.  
"We'll be back before you know" said Leo as he ended the video chat. The last they heard from Kai was his ferocious voice saying "LEO" and the picture turned to black. "Well let's get going" finished Leo as he and Damon got ready to take off.  
"No" said Maya firmly before they could do anything.  
"Aren't you the one that wants to go?" pointed out Damon.  
"Yes but Karone can't come" said Maya reviving the argument again.  
"She's fine" said Leo continuing with takeoff procedures.  
"No" said Maya once again.  
"Look, when we get there I can just wait with the ship if that's what you want" said Karone, trying to meet her half way.  
"No" said Maya stubbornly, "This is Ranger busyness" that hit a nerve for Karone. She couldn't believe she had finally made friends of her own and now they were pushing her away because they were Power Rangers. Because they were 'protecting her'.  
"Fine" she said turning to leave "I wouldn't want to get in the way of your Ranger duties" mocked Karone as she stormed out the bridge. She could hear Leo calling for her to come back but she knew Maya didn't want her there and she did have a point. They were rangers and she was not, the thought irritated her. Was this what it was going to be like, her friends abandoning her every time something more 'important' showed up? She began questioning whether or not it was worth keeping them as friends if she'd never get to see them.  
Stopping as she existed the ship, Karone looked back to make sure no one was watching and then entered a code into the small key pad at the side of the door. The camera above the door then came to life with its red glowing leans.  
"Greetings" said the female computer voice.  
"D.E.C.A, do me a favour and look after these guys for me" said Karone.  
"Of course Karone" replied D.E.C.A which made Karone smile at the ship's A.I, before she left the ship.

Since Kai and Kendrix had scolded her, all Karone had done was sit her room moping. The two had left to go after the other Rangers and for the second time today Karone was feeling left out. She knew that they were more powerful than her but still, she could handle herself in a fight and had more than enough experience.  
It had been hours since her friends had left and she hadn't moved from the edge of her bed. Finally getting sick of feeling sorry for herself she decided to go out for another walk. Her friends might not be back for hours and she needed to lift her spirits up, perhaps this time she'd find something to buy, or new friends.

After walking around and finding nothing interesting, Karone ended up at the edge of the domed city. Looking up into the sky, she couldn't help but notice something wrong with it. Even though it was a holographic image generated to make everyone feel more at home, Karone could see something in the distance that didn't look like a projection. The strange thing about the dome's projections was that if anything got within a certain range of the ship then it would be visible through the projection. What she was seeing looked like a ship.  
Suddenly alarms started to sound and the Commander's voice came in over the speakers.  
"We are under attack. I repeat we are under attack. All units prepare for combat. All civilians please make your way to the nearest safe zone. This is not a drill. I repeat this is not a drill" Not surprisingly everyone started to panic and run for their lives. But not Karone, she wanted to know who was attacking them. At this point she thought of herself as the only line of defence, since the Rangers were gone.  
The ship had gotten closer now and Karone was trying to analysis it, see if she could remember it or perhaps spot a weakness. The ship was shaped like a centipede with curved moon tail and bug head front. Everything about the ship screamed insect, even the way it moved through space, it looked like how an insect moved normally.  
It was now in striking range of the Terra Venture and began firing its green lasers. To everyone's surprise though, the laser shots passed through the dome and hit several buildings as it flew over. None of the hit buildings were near Karone but she could hear the screams from the other side of the dome. The blasts must have had some kind of phase technology, thought Karone, or perhaps the dome had some kind of transparent shield around it allowing blasts to pass through it.  
Either way the ship stopped being Karone's concern when two aliens beamed down nearby. One was Furio in his traditional red armour; the other looked like some kind of Elvis Presley impersonator with red skin, jelled up black hair and a crab claw for a hand. In his more human hand he held a blaster which he instantly began firing at the surrounding civilians.  
"Hey!" shouted Karone getting their attention.  
"Well, well if it isn't my old friend" teased Furio pointing his sword in Karone's direction. Karone didn't care about the dangers, she wasn't going to let these two hurt anybody on the ship.  
"Allow me" said the Elvis alien, even his voice sounded like an impersonation of Elvis Presley.  
"No" said Furio putting his hand in front of the alien "She's mine Radster. Continue your destruction until the Rangers come out and then bring me the Quasar Sabers"  
"No problem" said Radster happily as he ran off continuing his destructive rampage. Karone went to run after him but Furio cut her off.  
"Leaving so soon"  
"Get out of my way" said Karone gritting her teeth angrily. She knew Furio was tough but she needed to protect the citizens and keep Radster's attention on her, at least until the rangers got back.  
"You want past then you'll have to beat me" said Furio taking up a fighting stance with his sword ready to strike. Karone felt the urge to bring out her weapon, but that would require her to use her Astronema powers and that was too risky. She hadn't used then since her battle with Andros on the Dark Fortress and when she had used them as Astronema it always made her feel... evil. So for now, at least it was her fists and instincts against Furio and his sword.  
It was karone who made the first move, running at Furio. His mistake was swinging too soon and allowing Karone to see his sword coming. She dropped to her knees and slide under his sword before quickly jabbing him in the leg with her fist. This brought Furio down to her level while Karone continued her attack. Getting to her fee she hit Furio with several jabs before then finishing her attack with a round kick to the back of Furio's head.  
In the distance Karone could hear the mixture of blasts and screams from the city. Prioritizing the citizens over Furio, she made a run for Radster, hoping Furio wouldn't recover fast enough to stop her. Unfortunately he did, with an energy blast from his sword, Karone found herself on the ground. She managed to push herself up, but the pain coming from her back made it hard to do much more. Turning to Furio she thought she saw a smile, probably satisfied with his hand work.  
At this point Karone knew she had no chance against this man without her powers. Her first attack had been luck and nothing more. Glaring at Furio, Karone held out her hand, as if holding something that was not there. Furio watched her confused and for a moment he thought the girl had lost her mind. Then a purple glow formed in her hand, so bright it was unmissable, as if it was life reborn. The purple glow then spread out, dropping to the floor and reaching up forming a diamond shape point. Then after a bright purple flash, a staff appeared in Karone's hand. A long staff of metal with red diamond blade tip.  
Karone, still felt unsure about using her Astronema powers, but with the Terra Venture on the line it wasn't like she had much of a choice. Furio, though originally amazed, had now struck another fighting stance ready for the next round. He wasn't the only one that was ready; Karone could feel the pain in her back fading and her strength and stamina increasing. Maybe this was the right decision, she thought to herself getting into a fighting stance similar to Furio's.  
"Where did you get that?" asked Furio as the two stared tensely at each other.  
"What's it to you" snapped Karone, feeling her anger growing uncontrollability.  
"You have no idea what you're doing?"  
"I know more than you think" said Karone before attacking. Twirling towards him with her staff above her, Furio was surprised by her movements and how she managed to keep it up for so long. Because of her powers she could spin for longer than normal without getting dizzy. Quickly she struck with her staff; however Furio had gotten lucky and blocked her attack with his sword. Karone spun around and struck again, but once again Furio got lucky with his blocking. He was getting on Karone's nerves and without realising it she was now gritting her teeth and was glaring angrily at him. Something about her was making Furio feel uneasy and he backed away.  
With Furio on the retreat, Karone aimed the diamond tip of her weapon at him and let lose a bolt of purple energy. The blast hit and Furio lost hold of his weapon, stumbling backwards. Karone charged forwards and slashed upwards cutting Furio across the chest with her weapon; sparks flew as Furio fell to the ground.  
This was her chance, thought Karone, her chance to finish him. She pointed the tip of her weapon at Furio and prepared to strike. Furio looked up at her, his eyes full of terror. He knew this was the end. Karone pushed down with her weapon ready to pierce the alien, but something stopped her, with the weapon only just breaking through Furio's armour.  
Karone pulled away holding her weapon at her side, still looking down on Furio.  
"Leave" she ordered, but the alien rose up instead. He was weakened and holding one hand across the wound Karone had just given him, but none of that seemed to matter to him. He was more focused on Karone, he was analysing her trying to understand her. "Leave!" repeated Karone louder.  
"What's your name?" asked Furio, she could almost see the thought process going on in his mind.  
"Karone" she answered. For a moment nothing happened and then Furio smirked. Before Karone could get anything out of him he was gone in a bright green flash.  
With Furio gone, all she had to do now was deal with Radster. However before she moved on to him she had to make a decision, to keep using Astronema's power or not. She looked at the weapon in her hand, remembering what had nearly happened moments ago. She had almost killed some, an evil alien yes, but still. Karone knew that was a slippery slope for her. One wrong move and Astronema might take hold, like she had for so much of her life. She knew she had to stop otherwise there might be no going back. After a purple flash of energy from the staff it was gone and Karone was once again as powerless as anyone else. She felt empty, but knew she couldn't use it again. Power is like a drug, she reminded herself before the screams came again. Snapping out of her thought process, Karone made a break for the city as fast as she could run.  
Upon entering the city it wasn't hard to find Radster in the middle of the road blasting the buildings around him. Karone wasn't ready for this fight, as she still felt weak from the last one. Without her Astronema powers, the pain from Furio's attacks had returned putting her at a disadvantage against Radster. But she wasn't going to stand by while he destroyed her new home.  
Karone was about to make her move when a blast from Radster hit a nearby building causing rubble to descend on the two children below. Spiriting at full speed Karone managed to grab both the kids and jump back just as the rubble hit the ground. Landing on her back only made the pain worse, but at least the kids were safe. Refusing to stay down Karone got to her knees and told the kids to "Go and hide". The two said their thanks and gave Karone a quick hug before running of, she couldn't help but smile. She'd never saved anyone before, it made her feel... good.  
However after the hard landing, her back was in more pain than ever and she was nowhere near a fighting state.  
"That's right! Bow down before the King" shouted Radster, enjoying himself as he terrorised the citizens. Karone felt the need to do something but without her powers she would only get knocked down again, still.  
"Stop This!" shouted a Karone, loud enough to attract the Radster's attention.  
"I don't think so" said Radster as he aimed his blaster at her.  
"These people have done nothing wrong" pleaded Karone, hoping for once the bad guy would stand down.  
"Doesn't mean I can't bring them some quality entertainment" said Radster before firing his blaster. It shot the ground in front of Karone causing her to flip backwards and land on her front; at least it wasn't her back. Radster then returned to his random shooting with Karone lying on the ground. She was weak, but she had to keep going. Try and save as many people as she could, at least until the Rangers got back.  
Stubbornly Karone managed to push herself back up, shaking as she did so. Standing as tall as she could she called out to Radster again. This time when he looked back he saw a half slouched girl holding her chest with burses all over.  
"Back for more" said Radster aiming his blaster again.  
"Take your best shot" said Karone, gritting her teeth as her anger built. She wasn't about to take another blast like that, if he fired she'd pull out her powers and finish him with one blast like she had with Furio. The alien fired but before Karone even had a chance to think something else took the blast for her. As the smock from the blast cleared Karone spotted in between her and Radster was the Red Ranger.  
"Leo" said Karone with relief, about ready to fall over. Leo turned to her and took hold of her to stop her from falling.  
"Take it easy" said Leo, she couldn't see it but Karone had a feeling he was smiling at her so she smiled back.  
"Awe, how touching" said Radster before firing two more shots at Karone and Leo. Leo turned swiftly and spread himself out, ready to take another hit for Karone. But he didn't have too. Before the blasts could hit two Quasar Sabers slashed by and took the hit from the blasts.  
"Back off" demanded Damon, standing to the right a few steps ahead of Leo as the Green Ranger. Beside him was Maya as the Yellow Ranger, who had blocked the other blast.  
"About time you lot showed yourselves" grunted Radster ready to fire again. But Kai and Kendrix were quicker and jumped over the others and slashed with their Quasar Sabers sending Radster back.  
"You want us, well here we are" said Kai in an authoritative tone ready for more.  
"Ye" said Kendrix backing him up.  
Karone's vision was starting to blur and she could barely keep her eyes open. She knew what was coming next, she'd been knocked out before.  
"Leo..." was the last thin Karone said before she felt her body drop and everything went black. Before she lost consciousness, while everything was black, she thought she saw a flash of purple followed the near silent shriek of an animal.

"Once again you fail me Furio!" shouted Scorpius from his chair, Furio kneeling before him, his armour still damaged from the wound Karone had given him.  
"I'm sorry Scorpius. I ran into... a complication" admitted Furio  
"I asked you to bring me the Quasar Sabers. Not excuses!"  
"I'm sorry Scorpius. Please, give me another chance I won't fail you. I promise the Quasar Sabers will be yours" vowed Furio.  
"Perhaps the Quasar Sabers aren't the only thing of value on Terra Ventrue" came the sound of a strong female voice. Both Scorpius and Furio looked to the archway that lead out of the room to see a woman covered in black bug armour. The part of her not covered was her face, which was coated with black lipstick and eyeliner that made her brown eyes seem black and evil.  
"What do you mean my sweet Trakeena?" asked Scorpius in a nurturing tone to his daughter.  
"Well" started Trakeena as she stepped into the room and put a hand on Furio's shoulder. "I believe Furio may already know" she looked into Furio's eyes and he knew what to say next.  
"It's possible that an weapon once held by the legendary Astronema is on Terra Venture" said Furio looking to Scorpius.  
"More than that" said Trakeena, knowing what Furio didn't. "Astronema herself is on Terra Venture"  
"Impossible" said Scorpius in denial.  
"Not Impossible father. You see when Zordon's energy wave turned villains like Rita and Lord Z into good hearted humans. For Astronema it merely sealed her away, inside Karone" at the sound of the name he knew, Furio rose from his position and took up a position next to Trakeena.  
"That would be why she had Astronema's weapon" added Furio.  
"Bingo" said Trakeena satisfied, unlike her father.  
"Even if it is Astronema, why shouldn't I just destroy her?" asked Scorpius not wanting any competition for universal domination.  
"She's trapped inside Karone. So if we capture her perhaps we can, 'change her mind'" suggested Trakeena with a snigger at the end.  
"Very well. I'll allow it for you my princess. Furio! Go to Terra Venture and bring me the girl and hand her over to Trakeena" ordered Scorpius.  
"As you wish" said Furio, leaving to find an alien to help him in his mission. While Trakeena stayed behind, rubbing her hands together in delight. The thought of having someone like Astronema at their side made her grin from ear to ear at the possibilities.

Slowly coming to was not fun, even the slightest move of her eye lids seemed to hurt. Once open, Karone looked around unsure of where she was. It was one of the rooms on Terra Venture, she recognised the design, but it wasn't her room.  
Moving as slowly as possible, as not to hurt herself more then she already had, Karone sat up on the edge of the bed looking around. As she panned from right to left she spotted Maya sitting on the sofa in the corner of the room, staring at her. The girl's stare made her feel uneasy, but since she'd just recently lost everyone she'd ever known, Karone decided to let it slide. Getting to her feet, Karone couldn't stop herself from groaning, at which point Maya came over to make sure she was ok, letting Karone use her for balance.  
"Thanks" said Karone as she limped across the room with Maya holding Karone's arm over her shoulder.  
"It's no problem" said Maya helping Karone out the room.  
"Where are the others?" asked Karone as the two, slowly, made their way through the hallways.  
"At the guy's apartment. They're making dinner for us" answered Maya but other than that she didn't talk much for the rest of the walk. It took awhile but eventually Karone worked up the courage to ask her something that had been bothering her for a while now.  
"Do you not like me?" she asked, watching Maya's face as she responded.  
"No... I do... It's just..." something about Maya's answer made Karone nervous.  
"What?" asked Karone hiding her nerves well.  
"When I'm around you, I just feel... empty" the word made Karone look down in shame. "I'm not sure why and I do like you. I just don't feel, comfortable around you" said Maya shamefully. Karone respected her truth, and it brought her some form of happiness to know that Maya did like her. But she knew why Maya felt the way she did around her, it was Astronema. Somehow, even though they'd never met, Maya could sense her presence.  
"I'm sure it'll pass" said Maya reassuringly with a smile, which Karone returned half heartedly. Knowing full well the feeling wouldn't pass and that there would always be this tension between the two from now on.  
"Actually, would you mind taking me up to my apartment?" asked Karone "I'm feeling light headed and I think some more sleep would do me good"  
"Sure" said Maya as she helped Karone limp along to her room.


	5. The Never Ending Nightmare

**Chapter 5: The Never Ending Nightmare**

Karone awoke the same way she had done for the last few days, painfully. The fight with Furio still made her back ache and ever since she had kept her movements to as little as possible. She had reminded in her room, and excluding her friends rare visits, she had been alone the whole time. This however had given her the chance to catch up on her reading and also slowly build up her strength with small exercises like push up and sit ups. It had been hard at first but she learned to fight through the pain and now had a good routine going.  
She was around her thirtieth sit up when there was a knock at her door.  
"It's open!" Karone shouted as she continued with her sit ups. The door slide open and in walked Leo and Maya, surprised at what she was doing.  
"You sure you should be doing that?" asked a concerned Maya as she sat down on the floor next to Karone, still doing her work out.  
"Don't know why I shouldn't" said Kaorne honestly, not slowly down in her rhythm.  
"Maybe because you took a serious beating from Furios" pointed out Leo, looking through Karone's cupboards and fridge for something to eat.  
"That's why I'm doing this. So that I'll be ready if he shows up again" Karone said stubbornly as she reached her fiftieth sit up. Once done, she made herself comfortable on the floor next to Maya, stretching out her legs and arms.  
"Don't you think you're pushing yourself?" asked Maya.  
"Maybe, but it's the only way to get stronger" said Karone, with a smile to her friend.  
"Hey Karone" said Leo getting her attention, to which she looked up "Where's all you're food?"  
"Must have run out" guessed Karone, not realising that she had eaten it all.  
"When did you last eat?" asked Leo, walking over to the two girls.  
"Don't know" said Karone, shrugging it off like it was nothing.  
"Karone, you have to eat" Leo said, sounding over protective.  
"Ye. I know! How about you come to lunch with us" suggested Maya, sounding less concerned and more like a friend wanting to spend time with her. It made Karone happy that the two were getting along better now since their chat about Maya's 'feelings' towards her, Karone didn't blame her. She accepted it as a force of nature, what she did like was that Maya hadn't let it stop them from becoming friends.  
Karone pretended to think about it for a moment, teasing her friends before answering.  
"Ok" which was then followed by a laugh which Maya joined in with, Leo just grinned and helped Karone up then Maya. After a quick change into her black leather vest and pants with boots, Karone was ready to go. Her hair was tangled and messy but it didn't really bother her, she just preferred it straightened but recently she hadn't cared enough to go through the process.  
She followed Leo and Maya out the door, letting them guide her to which ever cafe or restaurant they wanted to eat at.  
She honestly didn't mind, but as they walked Karone began to realise how hungry she actually was. Perhaps she had been over working, she hadn't really been thinking about it, but looking back she wasn't entirely sure why she had pushed herself so far. At first she thought it was to get stronger so that she could take Furio on without using her Astronema powers. However at some point it seemed like something else was driving her to get stronger.  
She was forced to leave her thoughts when Maya began chatting to her. Engaging in the chat with her friends as they walked, Karone's thoughts about her overkill workout routine had vanished by the time she reached the end of the hallway.

After a short walk, Leo lead the two girls into an outside cafe, he pulled out a chair for Karone who sat down. While Maya pulled out her own chair, sitting down next to Karone.  
"Thanks Leo" said Maya sarcastically with a knowing smirk. An embarrassed Leo looked away as to hide his blush from the girls. They didn't see, but the two smiled at each other, crafting their own theories in their heads as to why he pulled out Karone's chair.  
Once he was ready, Leo sat down and a waiter appeared with three menus, handing them out. Quickly looking through, the three ordered a burger each and a plate of Fries. Leo and Karone ordered a cola while Maya just had water. Once the food arrived Karone eat her burger and over a half of the fries on her own, before deciding that she had had enough.  
"Are you sure you've had enough?" asked Leo offering her more fries.  
"I'm sure Leo" said Karone, thankful for his concern, and while he was looking away she gave Maya a sly smile. Maya giggled and Leo leaned in curious about what had been said.  
"What is it?" he asked.  
"Nothing" said Maya grinning at Karone. Leo decided it wasn't worth getting involved and shook his head back and forth with a smile. The waiter then returned and after both Leo and Maya pointed to Karone, she reluctantly paid up. Once he was gone, she questioned her friends.  
"How come you invite me to lunch, yet I'm the one paying" said Karone, half frowning half grinning at her friends.  
"They'd don't exactly know we're here yet" said Leo slyly, nodding to Maya.  
"Which means we don't have passes or cards to pay for things" said Maya, slightly ashamed.  
"It's fine, but get it sorted before you ask me out to lunch again" teased Karone getting up to leave. The three left the cafe and walked down to the park they normally hanged out in; normal being the few days when they hadn't been dealing with aliens.  
They found a comfy spot underneath a tall tree, which shaded them from the holographic sun. Maya sat in between the roots of the tree while Karone and Leo sat spread out opposite her. It was warm in the main dome today and the three were enjoying the good weather, especially Karone after having spent the last few days inside.  
Letting out a yawn, Karone lay her head down on Leo's lap, smiling happily as she enjoyed the moment.  
"You feeling better?" asked Leo, looking down at the girl with a smile.  
"Much better, thanks" Karone responded, looking up at him. As the two looked into each other's eyes, Maya couldn't help but grin away, even on Mirinoi she and her friends had enjoyed gossiping about the village couples. It seemed that on Terra Venture it wasn't much different, which made Maya feel more at ease and feel less homesick.  
Suddenly a red gas cloud passed over head and Karone began to drift away happily to sleep.  
"What's... going... on..." said Leo drowsily as he sunk to the ground with Karone.  
"I'm... feeling... Sleepy..." added Maya, fighting to keep her eyes open.  
"Better... morph..." Leo managed to get out in between yawns. Both he and Maya raised their left arms and pressed down on their morphers. In a flash of Red and Yellow, the two appeared in their Ranger suits, suddenly awake and alert.  
"You ok?" asked Maya as the two got up off the ground  
"Ye, what was that about?" asked Leo as the two watched the red gas cloud settle down over the city. Then Leo looked down at Karone, realising that she was now asleep. "Karone. Karone!" said Leo trying to shake her awake, but to no avail.  
"She's asleep" pointed out Maya looking around, noticing that everyone else around her was asleep too. "They're all asleep" she informed Leo who hadn't looked away from Karone.  
"We have to get her somewhere safe" said Leo lifting Karone up and carrying her in both his arms.  
"No, we have to find the others and stop what's ever causing this" said Maya.  
"You're right, but I'm not leaving her here. You go find the others and I'll get her to her room and catch up with you" Leo said compromising as he walked away holding Karone, tightly. Maya nodded and then ran off in the opposite direction to find the source of the gas cloud.  
After running for awhile, Maya reached her friends who had also morphed to protect themselves from the gas.  
"Maya!" shouted Kendrix waving Maya over to join her, Kai and Damon.  
"What's going on?" asked Maya as she came to a stop next to her friends.  
"Some kind of sleeping gas" said Kai looking around at the sleeping bodies around them.  
"We've got to find the source" said Damon more determined than usual.  
"You found it!" shouted a monster from across the opening. It was a big, red and bulky alien with two horns on the side of its head. In its hand was a thin handled hammer with a large head. "Now come on! Show me what you got" shouted the alien clearly looking for a fight.  
"Who are you?" demand Damon as the four rangers turned to face their opponent.  
"I'm Gasser. And you're finished!" shouted Gasser as he lifted his hammer and slammed it on the ground causing the ground to shake. The rangers managed to stand their ground, but only barley as their whole world literally shook.  
Once they recovered, they charged, pulling their Quasar Sabers out. Damon was the first to attack, jumping forwards and slashing with his saber at the alien. However Gasser countered quickly and realised a powerful gas that sent Damon flying backwards to the ground. The others quickly formed a protective ring around him as he got back up.  
"Come on guys, let's get him" said Damon ready to continue the fight.  
"Right!" shouted the other three in unison as they ran at Gasser.

Meanwhile across the main dome, Leo was still holding Karone in his arms trying to find somewhere safe for her. He had been wondering the streets for nearly an hour now and seen no where safe to hide Karone. He'd tried her apartment but someone had been there and broken the door so it wouldn't lock. That had only made him more sure that he had to hide Karone. Someone was clearly after her and Leo wasn't about to leave Karone in the middle of nowhere, defenceless.  
After then turning a corner, following the road, Leo spotted Furio walking down the road towards him.  
"Furio!" shouted Leo angrily.  
"Red Ranger. You have something I want" said Furio pointing his sword at Karone, still in Leo's hands. Leo looked down at Karone and then back at Furio.  
"Not a chance" snarled Leo, glaring at Furio behind his visor.  
"Then I'll just take it from you!" shouted Furio sending blasts of energy from his sword towards Leo and Karone. Leo was barely able to avoid the blasts and when the second wave came, he had to turn away to protect Karone from the blast, which hit him hard in the back. Once behind the safety of the building, Leo sat Karone down against the wall.  
"Don't worry, I'll protect you" whispered Leo to Karone. He then returned to the centre of the street to face Furio who was now closer. Leo pulled out his Quasar Saber and took up a fighting stance, as did Furio. The two staidly moved towards each other, waiting for an opening to strike. Furio was the first to strike with a large swing to Leo's left. Leo quickly moved his saber to block the attack but he stumbled backwards from the blow, as the next attack came. Leo ducked under and then swung with the sword. Furio easily deflected the attack and then struck quickly, sparks flying from where he hit Leo.  
Leo swiftly turned on his heels attacking as fast as he could, ignoring the blow that had hit him moments ago. Once again Furio blocked, but Leo knew what he was doing and then spun around his opponent slashing at his back. Furio stumbled forwards and then turned back to face the red ranger, and so the battle continued with sleeping bodies surrounding them.

As for Karone, she was stuck inside he dreams, only she felt a lot more in control. Like it was real. She was in the middle of the main dome city, but the odd thing was that it was empty. Karone looked down at herself, for some reason it surprised her that she was wearing her normal cloths. She walked down the middle of the road; since there were no cars she was free to walk the streets. As she walked she felt a wind blow by, followed with the outlines of people walking by. Slowly the people began to form, fading into existence. Each was unique, but there was one constant. None of them had faces. They were just people passing by. It creped Karone out but she pushed on, the people parting for her as she walked.  
Then as soon as they had appeared they disappeared. Karone looked around but couldn't see anyone, they had all gone. She spun around and around, looking up and down for any sign of life. It was then that something caught her eye, there was someone standing on the roof of one of the buildings.  
"Hey!" shouted Karone waving up at the stranger, but she didn't respond. She instead turned and vanished into thin air. Karone knew there was only one way off the building, she went running into the building and headed straight for the fire exist. Running up the stairs, after what felt like a second she was bursting through the door to the roof.  
But the stranger had vanished. She looked around for anything, any sign off where she had gone. Karone dared to look over the edge, she wasn't scared of falling. She saw nothing. The streets were still empty.  
Suddenly Karone felt hands on her back and she was sent flying from the roof. She flipped over herself and looked back up just as she hit the ground. Karone let out a groan as she got back up into a sitting position; how she hadn't been killed she had no idea.  
She sat on the ground looking up, Karone had to take a moment for her head to stop spinning, she could see the stranger had returned. Tilting her head Karone was certain that the stranger had purple hair.  
Almost as soon as it hit her who this was, the stranger jumped off the building and landed, elegantly on her black heeled boots. She dusted herself off and then put her hands on her hips shooting a smug smile at Karone, who was still on the ground.  
"Astronema..." Karone said with fear gripping her throat, she had barely been able to get the name out. This was no longer a dream in Karone's eyes, this was a nightmare.  
"What's the matter? Surprised to see me" teased Astronema, putting on heeled boot forward. Instantly Karone crawled backwards and pushed herself up off the ground, spiriting through the city streets as fast as she could.  
"Run, run, as fast as you can!" sang Astronema taking another few steps towards the running Karone. Karone heard the words but she they only made her run faster; she had to get away from her. It didn't matter where she went, she just had to escape. After turning several corners Karone finally looked back to see if she was being followed by Astronema. With her nowhere in sight karone ducked into an alley to hide and catch her breath.  
Breathing heavily, Karone leaned against the wall, her body covered by the shadows of the building. She could feel her lungs ache with each heavy breath. She knew it was dumb to waste all her stamina at once but she wasn't going to let Astronema catch her.  
A shiver went up her spin at the sound of 'clacking' heels on the road outside the alley came.  
"Karone. Karone" called out Astronema walking down the street, her voice getting higher each time she spoke. "Come out, come out, were ever you are" at the sound of her voice getting closer, Karone panicked and kicked in the fire exist door in front of her. The sound would attract Astronema but at least she had a head start to find a place to hide inside.  
She ran up to the fourth floor and burst into what appeared to be some kind of office, after running around the side of the room Karone slide under a desk and curled up into a ball. She lay there holding her knees against her chest, feeling each beat of her fearful heart. She was breathing heavily but when she heard the door open she closed her mouth and held her breath.  
The footsteps made their way to the centre of the room and then came to a stop. Karone had no choice but to wait and hope that Astronema would leave. Astronema then took in a deep breath of air, smelling it, using her senses to find Karone. The footsteps then followed quickly after, this time towards the desk Karone was under. When they stopped this time, Karone could now see the black leather heeled boots next to the desk.  
"Oh Karone" said Astronema looking down at the desk, where she knew Karone was hiding. Karone had to put her hands over her mouth to stop herself from screaming, but she couldn't stop her heavy breathing once the fear took over. "You can hide anywhere you like Karone, but I'll ALWAYS find you. After all we're linked you and I" Astronema started, as she began walking around the desk as if she were a lion circling her prey. "You never believed that coming here would get rid of me. You just wanted that stupid brother of yours out the way so that we could be together again. Without him holding you back, there's no reason why we can't go back to why things used to be. Come on, you know you want to!" said Astronema followed by a giggle.  
Karone could now feel the tears coming down her face like a river; she could barely hold back the sobbing noises coming from her mouth. All she wanted was to go back to the real world, with her friends. They would never let her down, epically Leo. Karone was snapped out of her thoughts when Astronema continued her monolog. "I am the REAL you. You just don't know it yet, but soon..." Astronema stopped talking and walking at the same time, standing where she originally had been in front of the desk.  
Suddenly she broke out into laughter, the laughter terrified Karone to the core but all she could do was stay still. The laugher went on for minutes before Astronema finally calmed down. Wiping her face of the joyful tears, she let out one last laugh before she spoke.  
"Oh Karone, how cute. You think the Red Ranger is going to save you" it was then Astronema made her move. With one kick she sent the desk, that was hiding Karone, flying across the room and into the wall were it smashed apart. Now that Karone was visible Astronema could see just how scared she was, satisfied she smiled at the girl. Karone stared up at her torturer who clearly was enjoying herself.  
Karone uncurled herself spread out on the floor and slowly began to crawl away, but this time Astronema was advancing on her not giving her a chance to escape. As Karone approached the wall, Astronema pointed her finger at Karone and shot a little bit of energy at her. She deliberately made it hit the floor just beside her, but Karone's scream showed just how scared she was, to which Astronema responded with another delighted giggle. Karone was now backed against the wall, corner by Astronema.  
"Poor, poor Karone" said Astronema shaking her head from side to side. "To scared to save herself because she's worried about what she'll become" as she finished, Astronema whipped out her staff and indicated it to Karone with her other hand. "Look at it" ordered Astronema, her anger showing. "It's one of the most powerful weapons in existence. You could kill anyone and anything with it" before continuing she stamped down and Karone's leg so she wouldn't try anything and leaned in towards her face. "So why didn't you" said Astronema gritting her teeth angrily at Karone. Karone was speechless though and hand no idea how to answer, even if she had an answer she wasn't sure she'd want to say it to her.  
"Answer ME!" shouted Astronema.  
"...I... I didn't want to... become you" Karone slowly said her eyes avoiding Astronema's. She didn't like that, so she grabbed Karone's jaw and moved her head so that she was looking at her.  
"Look at me" snapped Astronema, her expression then changed from anger to happiness as if someone had flipped a switch inside her head. "You can't escape the inevitable Karone. You and I both know how this will end. Now I could kill you now" said Astronema stroking the side of Karone's face, who didn't dare move encase she made her angry again. "but where's the fun in that" finished Astronema staring deep into Karone's eyes with a sinister smile spread across her face.  
Astronema then broke off her stare and stood up, her staff vanishing in a flash of purple light. She turned and took a few steps back into the centre of the room before turning back to face Karone, still on the floor.  
"Now I don't know how much time we've got together and I am enjoying myself. So why don't we play a bit more cat and mouse" said Astronema. She then curled her fingers in towards her palm twice, indicating for Karone to get up. Karone did get up, slowly moving up the wall until she was one her feet. She slowly made her way towards the door, her eyes fixed on Astronema as she carefully took each step.  
"RUN!" snapped Astronema and Karone instantly obeyed spiriting out the door and not looking back. But she could her Astronema's laughter even once she was out the building and half way down the street. It was as if the sound was echoing through the dome. Karone knew she'd just have to wait out the nightmare until it ended and hope that Astronema was serious about not killing her.

Back in reality Leo was struggling to keep Furio from advancing. No matter what he did the alien just seemed to either, block it, counter it, dodge it and on the rare chance Leo got a clean hit, he just seemed to get back up.  
"What's the matter Red Ranger, getting tired" mocked Furio circling to the left with Leo doing the same opposite him, their swords just short of touching each other. Leo was tried, the fighting had been going on for what felt like hours and he had been on the defending end since the start. He was breathing heavily and could feel his muscles ache, even when he wasn't using them.  
But he couldn't let Furio get Karone. Why he wanted her he did not know, but she was his friend and he would not give her up without a fight.  
"Not even close" responded Leo to Furio's comment.  
"Really? Because from where I'm standing you look pretty much finished" said Furio, he then swung his sword around above his head and struck downwards on Leo. Leo blocked with his saber but he had to drop to one knee to hold the weight of the attack. When Furio let off the attack, Leo swiped at his feet forcing Furio to jump back to avoid the attack.  
With Furio in the air, Leo went on the offensive and charged, slashing upwards with his saber. The attack hit but Furio didn't even flinch. He then proceeded to whack Leo aside with his sword like he was an annoying fly.  
With now Leo on the ground, Furio walked off towards the building Karone was leaning against.  
"You're coming with me girl" announced Furio aloud as he reached down to grab the girl.  
"I don't think so!" shouted Leo as he jumped towards Furio slashing at his back with all his strength. Sparks flew from all directions as Furio took the hits. When he finally turned around, swinging his sword at Leo, he missed as Leo slide through the gap in his legs. Upon turning back he saw Leo running two finger from the base of the saber's blade to the tip, leaving a trail of red glow on the blade.  
"Red Quasar Slash!" announced Leo before taking the saber in both hands and slashing downwards hitting Furio. The attack sent him flying backwards and when he managed to get up Leo and Karone were gone. Furio, using his sword to get up, advanced to were the two had been searching for were they could have gone. He was smocking and his armour now had a large scorch mark down the middle, but he didn't care. He just wanted Karone.  
Unknown to Furio, Leo had managed to scoop up Karone and run down a side alley before he had even noticed they were gone. Once three blocks away from where they had been, Leo noticed an open storage warehouse and decided it would be a good place to hide while he recovered. Closing the door behind him he found himself a corner and lay Karone down before surrounding her in empty cardboard boxes. At least even if Furio did find him he would have to work to find Karone.  
Sitting himself down with a few rows of shelves in between him and Karone, Leo then realised the strain that he'd just put his body under.  
He figured demorphing would help him recover but then he'd be affected by the, still present, sleep gas. He could still feel his muscles ache; in fact he was sure they hurt more now since the adrenalin had left his system. Keeping his ranger suit on was also taking a toll, he'd never been morphed for so long and he was feeling like his suit would shatter at any second.  
For now all Leo could do was sit and wait for the others to stop whatever was causing the gas. Until then he would not abandon Karone. He had promised her he'd protect her and he wasn't about to break that promise. True she hadn't been conscious at the time but that didn't matter to him.  
After a while his morpher went off, signalling that someone was trying to contact him. Leo pressed the communication's button on his morpher and waited for one of the other Rangers to answer him.  
"Leo! We need help in the plaza" said Kai through the morpher, the sound of fighting very clearly heard in the background.  
"I don't know. I've been fighting Furio and he seems really interested Karone. I've hidden her for now but I have a feeling he'll be back" explained Leo, glancing over at where he'd hidden Karone.  
"But Leo, if you don't help then we might not be able to stop the gas" said Kai, panicking. Leo knew what he had to do but he didn't know if he could abandon Karone. "Leo!" shouted Kai hoping to bring him to his senses.  
"Alright. I'm on my way" said Leo before ending the call. He took one last look at where Karone lay and then ran as fast as she could to the plaza hoping Furio wouldn't find Karone before he got back.

Karone ran into the bridge of the Mega Ship and began tapping rapidly at the control consol. Everywhere she seemed to go in this nightmare Astronema followed, she figured her best chance to escape was to fly out into space. Once ready, Karone wasted no time in flying the ship out of Terra Venture's hanger.  
Karone was still in a panick, breathing heavily as the ship flew full speed away from Terra Venture and Astronema. She loosened her grip on the controls before taking one deep calming breath. Even if Astronema had somehow gotten on the ship before takeoff, Karone had the home field advantage. She had travelled around the ship with Andros and his friends for a while before they all settled down on Earth, giving her more than enough time to learn the layout of the ship.  
"I know it too" whispered Astronema. At the sound of her voice Karone jumped around, but there was no one there. Was it her imagination playing trick on her.  
"No it's not" continued Astronema, her voice light. She was teasing Karone. Once again Karone jumped looking for the source of her voice. Was it in her head, no it couldn't be. After the second whisper Karone was certain it was real, but where was it coming from.  
It was then she noticed that the ship was losing its colour, turning to black and white. No not its colour, it was vanishing altogether. Slowly the ship vanished into nothing, leaving Karone floating through space. Karone tried to gain control of her endless floating but it was as if she was being forced down stream by an invisible current. It didn't take long for Karone to reach her destination. The Dark Fortress.  
At first sight Karone knew what it was and pointlessly tried to fight whatever force was pushing her. She would have hit the window of the Dark Fortress' throne room if she hadn't passed through it, after which she fell face first onto the floor. Groaning as she got to her feet, she heard Astronema before she saw her.  
"If you think that hurt then you'll love what's coming next" said Astronema. Looking around Karone, couldn't see her. She rotated around the room twice before Astronema appeared on her throne, smiling smugly at the confused and distressed Karone.  
"Why are you doing this?" asked Karone, her voice sounding defeated, ready to submit.  
"Why are you trying to keep me locked away" snapped Astronema, raising from her throne suddenly.  
"You're evil. I can't let you take over" said Karone deffencivly, like a child to their mother.  
"What's so wrong with being evil?" asked Astronema rhetorically as she walked across the throne room towards Karone. Karone now realised that running all over Terra Venture had worn her out, she had no more energy to run. So instead she just stood there while Astronema walked around her.  
"We're evil" pointed out Astronema.  
"No. You're evil" snapped Karone, who was quickly silenced by Astronema's light finger which pressed against her lips.  
"Am I? Remember who I am Karone. Who am I?"" asked Astronema, knowing the answer that the girl would give.  
"Me" answered Karone defeated, looking at the ground in shame while Astronema smiled satisfied with Karone's answer. Continuing to walk around Karone, Astronema didn't let up.  
"So by that logic, aren't you evil?" asked Astronema.  
"Only if I let you win" muttered Karone, but a surprising slap across the face from Astronema shut her up.  
"Don't speak! You've been doing that far too much recently. It's about time I got a shot, and like I said before 'I don't know how much time we've got'. So you're going to keep quiet and listen" said Astronema, before making her way back to her throne. Sitting herself down, she put one arm on the chair's arm and lent her head against it. Almost pouting.  
"Why can't you just see the big picture Karone. You know which one of us will win so why not just let it happen quickily rather than draw this out?" asked Astronema.  
"I don't give up that easily" replied Karone with a smirk "I guess I learned that from you". That made Astronema grin back at the suddenly filled with confidence, Karone.  
"Well at least its progress. And let's face it we've got a life time for you to come to your senses" the thought of having to do this for the rest of her life made Karone's face turn from a smirk, to a depressed and defeated glare at the floor. There was no way she would be able to keep this up for her whole life.  
Just the sight of Karone let Astronema know she'd gotten to her. Grinning she continued.  
"It's true you don't give up easily. But in our case that also applies to me, and something tells me that you're not as strong as me. After all, which one of us nearly conquered Earth" pointed out Astronema, enjoying the thought process of Karone who was destroying herself from the inside.  
"Why don't you just kill me?" asked Karone, not scared but questioning, curious.  
"I told you. I want to have fun" responded Astronema.  
"What kind of fun?"  
"The kind were you lose and I win" said Astronema  
"As I recall you've lost your fair share of battles against the Power Rangers" said Karone, grinning at her evil twin with her courage reborn. Astronema responded with a small laugh, before getting out of her chair and walking towards Karone.  
"Well, those Rangers aren't here to protect you now" said Astronema before pushing Karone backwards. Stumbling backwards into the window, Karone then realised just how trapped she really was, leaning against the window. "So what will you do now?" asked Astronema holding out her hand, in a purple flash her staff appeared and quick as lighting Karone found it's diamond bladed tip at her throat. Karone opened her mouth to scream, but barely even a gasp came out with the pressure of the blade against her throat.  
Suddenly Astronema's victorious smile changed to a confused one. Whatever it was she was currently looking at, it seemed to have her on the edge. Then surprisingly Astronema stepped backwards lower her weapon, before letting go of it all together.  
Turning around, to see what Astronema was so afraid of, Karone was amazed to see a gracious purple phoenix floating just inches from her face. Its wings burning in a glorious mixture of purple, pink and black, its feathers turning to flames and then regrowing as soon as they disappeared. Putting her hand to the glass, trying to touch the bird, she felt an instant connection to the creature. The Phoenix then put its elegant head to the glass, opposite Karone's hand. Its flaming wings then spread out, with the fire engulfing its whole body before passing through the glass in magnificent work of flaming art. As it moved into Karone's hand, it formed the shape of a flaming sword, which Karone took grip of with both hands. Looking at the beautiful sword, Karone then looked up at Astronema who had retreated across the throne room.  
"What's the matter, scared Astronema?" teased Karone grinning at the sudden turn of events. As her confidence grew so did the flaming blade, flickering like a real fire and constantly changing in shape. Karone figured she could finish this right here. One attack from this sword could easily kill Astronema and it would all be over.  
"You won't do it" said Astronema, once again reading her thoughts.  
"Watch me" said Karone holding the blade behind her, ready to slash forwards and finish Astronema. But before she had the chance everything began to phase in and out of existence.  
"What-what's happening?" asked Karone, holding the blade staidly, in case Astronema tried anything.  
"Looks like our time is up" said Astronema, resting her hands on her hips and grinning victoriously at Karone. Fuelled with anger, Karone swung with the sword but there was no connection, only Astronema's laughter.  
"NO! NO! NO!" shouted Karone repeatedly slashing at the air with the flaming sword, as if she was trying to hit a ghost. But with each slash she only made Astronema's laughter increase and her own anger. The world then began to vanish completely until only Astronema's laughter was left in the dark void.  
"Oh well Karone, there's always next time" said Astronema, followed by a giggle. "See you soon" and with that she was gone, leaving Karone in the void of her dreams. Continuing to scream in anger, Karone couldn't believe it. That was her only chance to stop Astronema and she messed it up. As the Fiery sword began to fade away, Karone was left on her knees. Crying. She would never be free of Astronema.

"IYA!" shouted Leo as he jumped towards Gasser swinging with his Quasar Saber. Unfortunately Gasser saw him coming and easy deflected the attack, sending Leo to the ground.  
"Leo!" shouted Kendrix as she and the others came to his side  
"Come on buddy" said Damon helping him up. Next thing the Rangers knew, they were all on the ground after an attack from Gasser. Laughing victoriously Gasser held out his hand, waiting for the Rangers to hand over their Quasar Sabers.  
"The sabers Rangers" ordered Gasser.  
"Never" replied Kai as he tried to get to his feet.  
"You'll have to kill us" added Maya as she and the rest followed Kai, standing up to face Gasser. Suddenly the ground began to shake and out of nowhere the Galactabeasts appeared, absorbing the gas around Terra Venture.  
"What?! What are you doing?! Where'd my Gas go?!" exclaimed Gasser as he watched helplessly as the huge animals took up all the red gas.  
"The Galactabeats, they're absorbing the gas" pointed out Kai as the people around him slowly began to wake up. Groaning with annoyance Gasser pulled out at glass tube with a green liquid in it.  
"I'll destroy for that!" shouted Gasser before downing the tube in one gulp, then Gasser grew to the size of the Galactabeats and began attacking them. The huge beast quickly ran for cover, with the exception of the red lion which stood its ground fighting off Gasser. But no matter his strength the lion was clearly losing to Gasser.  
"I'm coming!" shouted Leo jumping into the air and then landing on the head of the lion. "Come on, let's finish this!" shouted Leo encouragingly, eager to defeat this alien so he could get back to Karone.  
"Fire Power!" Leo shouted, with the lion roaring at the same time. In a flash the two were consumed in flames and charged at Gasser. Crashing right through the alien, he went up in a puff of smock, leaving nothing left of Gasser.  
Leo then jumped down to the ground and waved back up to the lion, as a thank you, before running of towards the building where he'd left Karone. The other Rangers followed, but Leo pulled ahead determined to get to Karone before anything else could.  
Bursting into the warehouse he rushed to the pile of boxes he had hidden Karone behind. But he quickly realised that she wasn't there anymore. Looking around frantically for her, Leo began to call out her name.  
"Karone! Karone!" shouted Leo pushing aside boxes trying to find her. It was then the others arrived.  
"What's going on?" asked Kendrix.  
"I left Karone here and now she's gone" said Leo indicating with his hand to the spot where he had hidden her.  
"Prephase she woke up" suggested Damon.  
"Well if she's not here then where is she!" snapped Leo, before flipping several more boxes in anger.

Slowly Karone came to, her vision blurred and her head hurting worse than ever. Lifting her head she was unsure where on Terra Venture she was. She was not aware of any green glowing caves on Terra Venture. Once her eye sight returned to normal, she then realised that this was not Terra Venture but another ship.  
"So you're finally awake" came a familiar voice. Looking towards the source of the sound, Karone spotted Furio standing in an archway that connected the room to a hallway. Karone tried to move but then realised that her hands were chained to the wall over her head. "You won't be going anywhere" said Furio jabbing Karone with his sword. Karone growled at him and shook her arms, rattling her chains.  
"She's a feisty one" said a female, who Karone hadn't noticed was standing to the right of her. She was covered in black, bug like, armour all over, except for her face which looked human. Despite the amount of black makeup on it.  
"Get these chains off me and I'll show you how Feisty I can be" said Karone followed by the shaking of her chains again, the woman just laughed at her. Furio backed away to the archway as the woman approached.  
"Now don't be like that. After all, you're our honoured guest, Astronema" at the mention of her other name Karone lost all the fight in her. Her lips parted in shock and she was certain her heart skipped a beat, while the woman just smiled at her. "That's right. I know your secret" teased the woman running her finger down Karone's left cheek.  
"Who are you?" asked Karone, careful not to irate the woman. She was now more concerned with this new woman than Furio, if she'd figured out who Karone was then she might be even more dangerous than Furio.  
"Trakeena" she answered "But you'll refer to me as 'My Queen'"  
"As if" said Karone with a graunt, looking away from Trakeena.  
"You'll see. My 'friend' will be here soon, but until then you might as well enjoy what free will you have left" said Trakeena before waving Karone good bye and existing with Furio close behind her. Once gone, Karone gave a pointless tug at her chains hoping to loosen them. Not surprisingly, they didn't budge. If they knew she was Astronema they wouldn't stick her in just any cell, no doubt that the archway had a force field on just in case she did escape.  
One thing Karone knew, she had to get off the ship before Trakeena's 'friend' arrived. She didn't want to stick around, especially if this 'friend' was going to take away her free will. Karone had spent most of her life without free will and she wasn't going to give it up without a fight. She suspected that it was Astronema Trakeena was after. Perhaps they wanted her on their side so that they'd have a better chance of destroying the Power Rangers. Either way it wouldn't end well for Karone if they got what they wanted.  
Closing her eyes Karone held back the tears in her eyes, except for one that got past and slide down her cheek before dropping on the floor. Her only hope was to escape herself. Her friends wouldn't be able to help her, and even if they could, would they? For the foreseeable future she was definitely alone.


	6. Return of the Phoenix

_Sorry for the delay, it's been a busy few weeks for me. Christmas and all. Will try and get caught up soon, have almost finished the next chapter and will upload later this week. Thank you for your patience and hope you all enjoy what's to come_

 **Chapter 6: Return of the Phoenix**

"Come On!" shouted Leo in frustration as he slammed his fist against the control panel of the Mega Ship.  
"Leo!" shouted Kai. Leo was about to shout something back but then realised that the other Rangers were staring at him, almost afraid. They had been looking for Karone for nearly twenty-four hours and there had been no sign of her. She wasn't on Terra Venture so they had gone looking for the Scorpion Stinger, but it had vanished too. This only made Leo more sure that Furio had captured Karone, because of this Leo had been letting out bursts of anger every so often.  
"Sorry" said Leo looking down shamefully as he returned to typing away at the ship's scanners, hoping something would appear that would lead them to Karone.  
"It's not your fault Leo" said Kendrix putting her hand on his shoulder to reassure him.  
"Of course it is. I never should have left her" said Leo not looking away from the scanner.  
"If you had stayed, then Terra Venture might have been destroyed or Furio might have gotten her anyway" pointed out Kendrix. This made Leo's anger spike again causing him to slam his fist again and turn his head to Kendrix with a an angry glare.  
"You don't know that!"  
"That's it!" shouted Kai pulling Kendrix back and stepping in between her and Leo. "I get this is hard for you, you let down your friend. But she's OUR friend too. We are doing everything we can to find her Leo, but lashing out at everyone isn't helping find Karone" said Kai, his voice getting calmer with each word as his anger faded. Leo didn't respond, and turned his head back to the scanner.  
Kai was right, everyone on board wanted to find Karone but with the scanners barely worked and their chances of finding the Scorpion Stinger were close to zero.

Lifting her head at the sound of footsteps, part of Karone hoped it would be her friends coming to save her. However it was just a Sting Winger coming to check up on her. It turned its head, staring at her, unsure of how she was.  
"Still her" said Karone, and with that the Stinger Winger left. She couldn't say, but Karone did feel as if she had been on the ship for nearly a day now. Of course she had dozed off for a while, how long she wasn't sure. Giving another tug of her chains, that were tight as ever, Karone groaned. Her legs were killing her, she just wanted to sit down, but her chains prohibited her from doing so.  
Once again came the sound of footsteps, sparking hop inside Karone. Each time she thought it would be her friends and each time she was wrong. Every time she hoped a little less. And it wasn't her friends, just Trakeena in her bug armour and evil grin.  
"Good morning" said Trakeena delightfully.  
"Is it?" responded Karone.  
"Now Astronema, don't be like that" said Trakeena stepping closer.  
"My name's Karone. Not Astronema" said Karone, her anger flaring but Trakeena just laughed.  
"You'll soon come around to my way of thinking" said Trakeena with a smile before continuing, "Come in Mind Extractor" shouted Trakeena out to the hallway and then the alien entered. At a guess Karone figured it was a male, but you could never be sure with aliens. He was thin in shape with long white fury legs ending in what looked like hooves, while his arms were the same his hands were huge and club shaped with five tiny fingers sticking out at the end. As for his head it was shaped like a heart but with a red and white spiral just above his two eyes.  
"Mind Extractor, meet Astronema. Astronema meet the alien that's going to change your world" said Trakeena before taking a step back for Mind Extractor to take her place in front of Karone. Grabbing Karone's face with both hands, Karone felt a surge of energy move through her head and into her eyes. They instantly became magnetized to the spiral on Mind Extractor's head.  
"Come out Astronema" whispered the Mind Extractor, his voice much lighter and sweeter than Karone had expected. It was then Karone saw the spiral spin, expand, taking up her whole world. "Come out Astronema" repeated the alien and Karone could feel herself changing, she wasn't just hearing Mind Extractor's voice now but someone else's as well. It sounded like the groan she would make whenever she woke up, while stretching.  
"Didn't expect to see you again so soon" came the familiar voice causing Karone to scream, so loudly that Mind Extractor lost control and stumbled back.  
"Please no! You don't know what you're doing!" pleaded Karone, trying to make them realise that they would never be able to control the demon inside her.  
"Get back to work" snapped Trakeena and Mind Extractor did as ordered taking hold again. Karone tried to fight it but she was being sucked into Mind Extractor control, it was like she was trying to escape quick sand.  
"Come on Karone, don't be like that" said Astronema, this time appearing in place of Mind Extractor. Karone tried to move but she was still chained to the wall that she could no longer see. Laughing at her pathetic attempt of escape Astronema stepped closer, grabbing hold of Karone's jaw with one hand. "You're never going to escape like that. Why not let me help you" said Astronema with a smile. Karone had to admit the offer was tempting, to get out of this place.  
"No. I'm not letting you out!" shouted Karone defiantly.  
"Doesn't seem like you have much of a choice" said Astronema. She waited for Karone to respond but she remained stubbornly silent. "Fine, let's do it the hard way" she announced before piercing Karone with her other hand, like a ghost passing through. Screaming out in pain Karone could feel Astronema taking over. Leaning in Astronema whispered into Karone's ear "I'm glad we did it the hard way". Next she shoved her other arm inside Karone, Karone tried to scream but nothing came out. Astronema then slide inside Karone, as if merging with her, taking over.  
Mind Extractor realised his grip on Karone and stepped back for Trakeena to admire his work.  
"Astronema?" asked Trakeena aloud, but nothing. Karone just stood there, chained against the wall with her head leaning forward. Slowly Karone's head rose up, Trakeena spotting a sinister smile on her face. Once her head was up, Karone's eyes flashed purple and everyone knew that she wasn't Karone anymore.  
"That was quick" said Trakeena looking over to Mind Extractor, pleased.  
"It was no problem my princess" said Mind Extractor bowing for her.  
"Astronema, who do you serve?" asked Trakeena stepping forwards so that she was inches from Astronema's face.  
"No one" responded Astronema and before Trakeena could act, Astronema had her legs up and around Trakeena's neck. Squeezing tightly, it was easy to stop Trakeena from breathing. Trakeena gasped and held up a hand to plead. Astronema just grinned at her, satisfied with her begging.  
"Because you got me out, I won't kill you. Yet" said Astronema just before Trakeena lost consciousness and fell down.  
Looking to Mind Extractor with a snarl it wasn't hard to scare him off. With him gone Astronema gave one powerful tug of her chains and they broke away from the wall. A quick blast of purple energy from her finger tips and the chains fell off and she was free, not just physically but mentally. Taking in a deep breath of air, thought not the best smelling it was still her first breath of air in months. "It's good to be back" announced Astronema walking out of the room and beginning her search for a way of the ship.

Meanwhile back on the Mega Ship, the Rangers still had no luck finding any trace of the Scorpion Stinger. They had been searching for too long without any sleep. Most were struggling to keep their eyes open, especially Damon, who had fallen asleep twice now while flying.  
"I can't take this much more. I need sleep" complained Damon, lying across the controls as he half flew.  
"Not until we find Karone" said Leo stubbornly, not taking his eyes off the monitor.  
"Leo. I want to find her to but this isn't working" said Maya putting a hand on his shoulder and forcing him to turn around. "Even if we did find her now we'd get slaughtered if we tried to fight our way in"  
"I'm not going back to Terra Venture without her" said Leo looking up at her.  
"No one's asking you to give up" said Kai walking over with Kendrix.  
"We just need to take a little break" added Kendrix.  
"Yea" muttered Damon in agreement from the background too tired to move. After a moment of consideration Leo nodded in agreement.  
"You're making the right decision Leo" said Kai with an approving nod.  
"Yes!" said Damon happily as he pushed of the controls and made for the door, a head of the others. But no sooner had he left the room, did the alarm go off. "What now!" shouted Damon as he stumbled back around into the bridge. After a quick scan Kendrix found the source of the alarm.  
"An Alien is attacking Terra Venture" explained Kendrix looking back at the others.  
"We have to go back" said Kai, giving Damon a nudge to go.  
"No!" said Leo firmly grabbing hold of Damon's hands before he could move the ship. "We're not going back without Karone!"  
"We need to go back Leo" said Kai pushing off Leo away from Damon. "Get us back to Terra Venture" ordered Kai. Then before he knew what was happening, Leo was on top of him and Kai was pinned to the ground.  
"We can't just leave her!" shouted Leo angrily as he started punching Kai, who was narrowly dodging the punches by moving his head from side to side. Luckily before Leo could land a brutal hit on Kai, Maya pulled him off and knocked him out with one swift punch to the face.  
"Sorry Leo" said Maya before she and Kendrix helped Kai up while Damon set a course for Terra Venture.  
"Leo's not going to be happy when he wakes up" pointed out Damon looking at the unconscious Leo on the floor.  
"He doesn't need to be happy. He just needs to be able to fight" said Kai clearly not caring about his friends feels right now. It wouldn't be long now until they reached Terra Venture, but their main concern was taking out the alien. They were still all exhausted and it was unlikely that they'd be working well as a team, with Leo so focused on finding Karone. Still they had a duty to protect the innocent from the evil no matter what, even if it coasted them their lives.

Back on the Scorpion Stinger, Astronema was still free and walking about. Though not in her normal clothing or hair colour, she was happy to be back in control of her body again.  
Turning a corner she encountered a patrol of five Sting Wingers, most likely looking for her.  
"Why hello there" said Astronema, almost flirting with the bug like aliens. One swung at her, but she easily countered it and knocked it out. Two others came at her and she cartwheeled through them, so that the four now surrounded her. With a grin she stood up straight, not expecting a hard fight. Then with one hand on her hip, she extended other hand and index finger into the air. The tip of her finger began to glow purple and then a wave of purple energy shot out in a circular wave taking out all four Sting Wingers at once. "Pathetic" said Astronema before vanishing down the hallway leaving the defeat Sting Wingers on the ground.  
It didn't take her long to find the hanger of the ship, in which there was several ships for her to take. For some reason the hanger was clear, not a Sting Winger insight. Quickly hopping into a one man ship she closed the hatch and started up the engines just as she spotted a small group of Sting Wingers running towards her. Before they could get close enough Astronema lifted the ship off the ground and aimed its lasers at the group. With a double tap of the button on top of the joystick, two green laser blasts shot out and easily destroyed the group, clearing her path for a getaway.  
Lightly pushing the joystick forwards, Astronema flew the ship out of the hanger and into the depths of space. Looking back at the ship she had just escaped from Astronema couldn't help but let out an evil, satisfied grin. Leaning back in her chair relaxing with her hands behind her head, she couldn't believe how easy it had been to escape. However she was grateful for the alien that had allowed her to gain control of her body again. If it hadn't been for him then she would still be trapped in the back of Karone's mind.  
Suddenly her head was struck with pain and her hands swung around from the back of her head to her forehead. Rubbing it to try and relieve the pain, it was no good. Groaning, she could feel herself losing control. "No... No... NO!" shouted Astronema as the world went black and she vanished into the back of Karone's mind.

Suddenly back in control, Karone was gasping for air, as she held the side of her head. How could Astronema have gained control, thought Karone panicking. If she did it once then she could easily do it again. She could almost see Astronema grinning at her in the blackness of space. It may not have been for long but she still had control of her body, she felt so violated and began to shiver.  
Looking forward into space she spotted a completely green planet. Karone didn't recognise the planet but with the ship's fuel cells low and needing recharged, she didn't have much choice but to land on it and hope there was some way to contact her friends.  
After landing the ship, in amongst the huge trees of the worldwide forest, Karone did a quick check for anything of value before smashing the controls with a blaster she'd found in the ship. Leaving the broken ship behind, there was little chance of her enemies tracking her and even if they did find the ship it was unlikely they'd find her on the planet. With the blaster holstered in the belt around her waist, she hopped over a fallen tree trunk and continued on.

For the Rangers, they had just arrived back at Terra Venture with Leo waking up.  
"What... what..." said Leo as he shook his head, looking around. He spotted Maya and tried to move but quickly realised that he was handcuffed to a steam pipe. Pulling at it, Leo knew it was not coming off without the keys. "What's going on?" asked Leo furiously, shaking his cuffed wrist.  
"Kai chained you up after you started acting out" explained Maya.  
"Why would I-" Leo stopped talking when he began to remember what had happened. "Karone... Where's Karone!" shouted Leo panicking as he pulled at the hand cuffs again.  
"Leo, calm down" said Maya stepping closer, her hands held up defensively.  
"How can I be calm!" shouted Leo, "We abandoned Karone! We left her alone and scared, at the mercy of Scorpious"  
"Leo!" shouted Maya stopping him from continuing, "I want to find her too, we all do. But we can't leave Terra Venture defenceless to go and search for ONE person"  
"But-" started Leo but with a hard 'SSSHHH' from Maya he stopped and sat himself back down. He knew that Maya was right, he just didn't want to give up on Karone. Not after he abandoned her and left her defenceless, at the mercy of Furio. "We'll deal with this, rest, and then head back out to find Karone" said Maya reassuringly "But we need your help to take down this alien" said Maya moving Leo's head with her hand so that her eyes met his. After a moment of consideration he nodded and she removed his handcuffs.  
After regrouping with the other Ranger, the gang made their way to city where Furio and a group of Sting Wingers were attacking innocent civilians. The five Rangers ducked into an alley as not to be spotted and got ready to morph.  
"Ready?" asked Leo.  
"Ready!" said the others in unison.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced the five as they raised their morphers and pressed down on them. In a flash of red, blue, green, yellow and pink they reappeared in their Ranger suits. Then flipping through the air, they all landed in a line facing Furio.  
"Stop right there!" demanded Leo, to which Furio returned around.  
"Ah! Red Ranger, lost something have you?" mocked Furio, knowing that Leo knew he had Karone. Leo screamed in anger as he charged forwards, his friends tried to stop him but he was too fast. However before he got even a few meters, Leo and the others were hit with several mini spikes that instantly knocked them down. Looking up, Leo could see another alien had appeared. His body colour light brown, with a face mixed between a Chinese mask and a humanoid bug. It also had two small wings on its back, too small for flight. As for armour, all it had was black leather gauntlets and boots with black kilt.  
"Excellent work Quakemaker" said Furio patting the alien on the back proudly. The Rangers groaned in pain as they got to their feet, knowing they were all too exhausted to fight. "Let's finish them!" ordered Furio raising his sword.  
"As you wish" said Quakemaker in agreement as he pulled out a foil sword and charged all side Furio at the Rangers, with a group of Sting Wingers behind them. The Rangers, heroically, stood their ground and pulled out their Quasar Sabers ready to fight.

Karone had now been walking through this forest for nearly an hour now and she hadn't seen any sign of life, bar the trees. Not even animals, none. When she stood still she could hear nothing, not even the sound of rustling trees. She also couldn't feel a hot sun or the cold. The planet was at the perfect temperature with no other feature other than the green forest that had now swallowed her.  
After what felt like miles of walking Karone came to the edge of the forest and spotted a small mountain with a path before her leading to the top. Hoping that she'd be able to spot some form of civilisation from the peak, Karone made her way along the path. After the short walk she reached the top and looked around. Nothing. Nothing but the green of the forest surrounding.  
Feeling defeated, Karone dropped down on her the hard rocks and looked out over the green sea of tree tops. She took in a calming breath of air but it didn't seem to work in calming her mind. She was begging to feel trapped with no escape. A small smile came to her face at the thought of begging trapped here for the rest of her sort life. At least here, if Astronema got her body it would be useless to her.  
Staring into the distance, Karone felt something that she hadn't felt since she got on the planet. Wind. Realising the burst of wind that had just passed by Karone suddenly became alert. She jumped up to her feet and looked out in the direction the wind had come from. She didn't know what exactly she was looking for but it didn't take her long to spot something on the horizon. It was a bird of some kind, flying towards her.  
This was the first sign of life Karone had seen and she wasn't about to take her eyes of it. After a few seconds Karone realised that it was flying quiet fast, and growing in size. Getting closer and closer, Karone could now make out the purple colour of its feathers and the trail of pink it was leaving. Then in a sudden burst of speed the bird was right in front of her, it narrowly dodged Karone switching it's direction at the last second and flipping over Karone. Spinning around on her heels she watched as the bird sat it's self down on the rocks.  
"Phoenix" said Karone, quietly as not to scare the bird away. It was only then that Karone realised how this Phoenix looked identical to the one in her nightmare. Taking small and cautious steps towards the phoenix she got within touching distance and slowly reached forwards. She touched the bird with the tips of her fingers, lightly pressing them against the bird's beautiful and elegant wings. The phoenix didn't seem to mind and allowed Karone to stroke it.  
When Karone smiled at the phoenix it shirked out and spread its wings before begin engulfed in purple and pink flames. Jumping back from the hot flames, there was nothing Karone could do but watch as the bird turned to ash in front of her.  
"No..." Karone said silently, with tears welling up in her eyes. However, as the flames of purple and pink cleared, Karone spotted a sword in the rock the phoenix had been sitting on. Wiping the tears from her eyes she noticed how it looked remarkably similar to the Quasar Sabers. The design was the same but the guard, connecting the blade to the handle, was shaped like the wings of the phoenix rather than the simple style guard the Quasar Sabers had. And at the end of the handle was the head of a phoenix, small and golden like the guard.  
Looking closely at the new Saber, Karone couldn't help but be impressed by the design of the sword. Like the phoenix, it too was both beautiful and dangerous. She approached the saber in the rock and took hold with one hand. The saber's blade flashed purple and Karone felt the saber come loose. Smoothly Karone removed the saber and lifted it to the sky letting the sun above shine on the blade making it sparkle.  
Something inside her took hold and a smile of enjoyment took over her face. Lowering the saber, she now held it in both hands inspecting the blade. It was then the saber flashed purple and then flashed again before disappearing into purple dust. Before Karone could act the dust surrounding her left wrist formed a morpher, similar to the other Rangers', but with a line down the middle for sliding something threw. Then the rest of the dust formed into a purple feather in Karone's right hand.  
Her head switched from gazing at the morpher to the feather, unsure of what exactly this meant. Was she a Power Ranger? Karone wondered looking at the two new items she had just received. Annoyingly this didn't give her away off this planet and back to her friends. Looking up to the sky for another miracle, Karone was hit by another gust of wind.  
Pushing her hair back and looking over she show a white shuttle positioned nearby the mountain, hovering across from her. It took Karone a moment to realise that it was the shuttle that combined with the Mega Ship to form the Astro Megazord. Once close enough, the door to the ship flew open and Karone jumped aboard, putting the feather from the phoenix in her back pocket. Pulling the door closed behind her she took a seat in the ship's control room. It had changed since she last saw it; it now only had one seat and was much smaller. Suddenly the small monitor in front of Karone came to life, and on the screen appeared Andros.  
"Andros!" shouted Karone, overjoyed at the sight of her brother.  
"Hey Karone" responded Andros naturally, unaware of what had happened to her.  
"What? How?" said Karone, unsure of which question to ask first.  
"I sent you the shuttle. Figured you could use it to come and visit your big brother" said Andros.  
"You have no idea how grateful I am for this" said Karone, relieved.  
"Why?" asked Andros, a hint concern in his voice.  
"I'll tell you later. Right now, I've got to get back to my friends. Does this ship no how to find Terra Venture?" asked Karone as she fiddled with the controls.  
"Not Terra Venture, but it should be able to find the Mega Ship... Wait, why do you nee-"  
"Great! Thanks Andros, I'll call you once I've found my friends" said Karone interrupting her brother and ended the call before Andros could ask any more questions. She wasn't entirely sure how he would react to finding out she had been kidnapped and that Astronema had gotten out. She wasn't even sure how she felt about it yet, her feels had felt like they were in a tornado these last few hours. Pushing aside her thoughts, Karone plotted the course for the Mega Ship. The shuttle locked on to its signal and she was off.

Leo ducked quickly under Furio's swinging sword but before he could counter two Sting Wingers took him from behind and knocked him to his knees. Furio then came at Leo, slashing him across the chest several times before sending him flying with an almighty punch. Leo rolled across the ground, finally stopping when he hit a nearby building.  
Looking up it was obvious to him that things weren't going well. Kendrix was holding her own against some Sting Wingers, but more were coming at her and she would soon be overwhelmed. As for Maya and Kai, they were fighting Quakemaker who was easily destroying them with the help of some Sting Wingers.  
"Get up Leo" said Damon as he appeared from nowhere and helped Leo up to his feet.  
"Thanks Damon" said Leo as he leaned on Damon for a second until he got his balance back.  
"I'm not finished with you Red Ranger!" shouted Furio, running towards him. Leo and Damon both struck a stance before running at Furion. Damon took the lead and slide down slashing at Furio's legs while Leo struck across Furio's chest. Both hit him but their attacks didn't seem to hurt him in anyway. Turning swiftly Furio shot two blast of energy brining the Green and Red Rangers to their knees.  
Furio went in for the kill but Kendrix managed to block his attack before he got near Leo or Damon. Unfortunately this left her defenceless to several Sting Wingers that shot at her from behind. Watching Kendrix take the hits, Furio stepped back and let her fall to the ground. Once on the ground, her powers gave out, and in a flash of pink her suit was gone.  
"Kendrix!" shouted Kai, running at Furio. Screaming as he lunged, it was easy for Furio to counter and push Kai to the ground while brutally hitting him across the back with his sword. Like Kendrix, Kai to demorpheed and now lay next to Kednrix.  
Leo and Damon saw no choice but to get Furio away from their friends and charged at him, pushing him as far back as they could before two Sting Wingers grabbed them and through them back. Next thing they knew Quakemaker was shooting spikes at them and they were sent flying into a nearby building. Hitting the wall, their powers faded as they hit the ground without their suits or weapons. Now all that was left was Maya. Sting Wingers quickly surrounded her and individually they took shots at her. It didn't take long for Maya to get over run, and with a finishing shot form Quakemaker she was sent flying towards her friends. Getting back up, Maya's suit vanished, leaving the Rangers now powerless and outnumbered greatly.  
"Well, well. I never thought it would be this easy to end the Power Rangers" mocked Furio with an evil laugh as he watched the Rangers group together. The Sting Wingers surrounded them, allowing the Rangers a large area to stand in. They didn't put up much of a fight they were finished, and they knew it. The only positive was that there were no civilians around to watch them fail. "It ends here Rangers" said Furio aiming his sword at them. He waited for the Rangers to come back with some cheeky remarks, but none came. They were breathless tired and were luckily to still be standing at this stage. The fight had been one sided the whole time, with the Rangers tired and down on moral, they were always going to lose this fight. "Die!" shouted Furio as he charged up his energy ball at the tip of his blade. The Rangers closed their eyes and held hands, accepting the end.  
Then out of nowhere three flaming purple feathers came flying in and hit Furio, causing him to miss the Rangers and instead hit his own Sting Wingers. "WHAT?!" shout Furio in annoyance as he looked to the source of the flaming feathers. The Rangers followed his gaze and all their jaws dropped when the saw Karone standing a few feet away from all of them.  
"Karone" said Kendrix in surprise as they stared at the blond haired girl in amazement, as she stared on at Furio, ready for a rematch.  
"But-how-how could you have escaped" said Furio in shock, unaware of Karone's escape.  
"I had a little help" said Karone with a smirk.  
"Shall I take care of her Furio?" asked Quakemarker stepping forward.  
"No. She's mine" said Furio snarling at the girl ahead of him. "Take this, and destroy the city" ordered Furio as he handed the alien a bottle with a green liquid in it.  
"Yes sir" said the alien running off with the liquid.  
"You shouldn't have sent him off" said Karone grinning at her enemy. "You're going to need all the help you can get" This just made Furio angery.  
"Sting Wingers! Take Her!" shouted Furio enraged, the Sting Wingers charged leaving the Rangers un guarded.  
"Karone!" shouted the other Rangers as the large group of Sting Wingers descended on her, like a pack of lions attacking a gazelle. The last they saw of Karone was a confident grin.  
"Phoenix Feathers!" shouted Karone and in a large eruption of purple flames all the Sting Wingers were taken out in a second. The Rangers and Furio stared in shock at the piles of Sting Wingers that lay on the ground in between them and Karone. Each one had a small purple feather that had priced them like a knife.  
"H-h-h-how could you?" asked Furio, in fear of Karone's new powers. "Are you... are you?" asked Furio, fear taking hold at the thought of who he might be facing.  
"I'm Karone. No matter what anyone else calls me, I will always be that" said Karone confidently as she walked over the burnt Sting Wingers, fire in her eyes. "What you say Furio, round two?" asked Karone. Before Furio had a chance to react Karone held out her left arm, horizontal to her body and pulled out the Phoenix feather with her right hand, positioning it horizontally like other arm. "Phoenix Power!" announced Karone as she pulled the feather through the gap in her morpher. Her morpher then began to glow purple and Karone followed through with the feather swipe before spreading her arms out.  
The whole world went black as a vortex of purple flames surrounded Karone up to her neck. It quickly disbursed leaving a purple Power Ranger suit, similar to the other Galaxy Rangers' suits. The Phoenix then appeared behind Karone and wrapped it's wings around her head before transforming into a purple helmet with a black visor shaped like the beck of a Phoenix.  
"IYA!" shouted Karone as she struck a fighting stance in her new Purple Ranger suit. Everyone stared at Karone in awe as she pulled out her Phoenix Saber from the horizontal sheath attached to the back of her waist. As she wiped out the sword it extended in length like the other sabers did when removed from their sheath.  
"What kind of trick is this?" asked Furio in disbelief at the sight of another Power Ranger.  
"No trick, this is the real deal" said Karone, holding out the saber in front of her. Distracted by Karone, Furio hadn't notice the other Rangers regroup with their lost friend.  
"Karone, how-how did you-" asked Maya unable to finish her question.  
"I'll tell you later. Right now we've got to stop Furio and his friends"  
"Right" said the others in unison as they got ready to Ranger up.  
"Go, Galactic!" shouted the Rangers. Each appeared a dark world with their Ranger suits on and then waved both their hands past their faces in unison, leaving behind a helmet on their heads. Then once the visor closed over, they were ready.  
"Alright guys, let's do it" said Leo with newly found strength.  
"Right!" shouted the others in agreement, as they all pulled out their Quasar Sabers.  
"Sting Wingers attack!" ordered Furio and what remained of his army charged. The Rangers scattered to different parts of the street and took on several Sting Wingers alone.  
Karone had taken moved to the centre of the street and quickly blocked two approaching Sting Wingers. Then she quickly finished them with one smooth swing across the chest with her saber. Another tried to get her from behind but Karone saw it coming and ducked, before kicking the Sting Winger's ankle causing him to fall. Getting back up, Karone used the saber to block an attack from behind and then spun around striking the next Sting Winger with ease.  
Looking up, Karone saw a clear path through to Furio. She ran at the monster, gripping the saber with both hands, and jumped. Slashing down hard, Furio blocked the attack, but was forced backwards.  
"Remember me?" asked Karone rhetorically, not letting the pressure off her attack.  
"Oh I remember you... Astronema" said Furio. Behind her visor Karone was gritting her teeth in anger.  
"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" shouted Karone as she started whacking Furio's sword with her saber. Once again Furio was forced back by Karone's brutal attacks. It took him a moment to get his thoughts together, but once he had them he easily side stepped Karone and got a clean hit on her chest. However it didn't seem to affect Karone. She pushed through the pain and stuck down hard on Furio's armour, causing sparks to fly. She now had her chance to lay into him with everything she had. Karone pressed on, hitting Furio from every angle she could.  
Furio felt defenceless, every time he tried to defend himself his sword got knocked aside by the enraged Karone. He was finally pushed to the ground, smoke coming from his scorching wounds. Karone was now ready to deliver the final blow that would end Furio. He was defenceless and on the ground. One strike would end him easily.  
Raising the sword above her head, Karone got ready to attack. Suddenly, before she could attack, the ground started to shake and a giant version of Quakemaker appeared in the city.  
"What the?" said Karone, surprised at the sight of the huge monster. Looking back down at the ground, Furio was gone. She regrouped with her friends who had taken out the rest of Sting Wingers. "What's going on?" asked a confused Karone.  
"These guys like to think bigger is better" said Kai as he and the others looked up to the sky, where Quakemaker was attacking the city.  
"Some things never chance" muttered Karone to herself.  
"We've got this Karone, you just stay back" said Kendrix, just as the Galactabeasts emerged. The five original Rangers jumped onto their respective zords and prepared for battle. Maya and Kendrix went first, attacking fast with their four legged zords. However Quakemaker easily countered and brought the two zords to their knees with several spikes. The spikes had gone straight through zords paws, trapping them.  
Now it was Kai and Damon's turn. Kai's gorilla charged at the alien, who not only withstood the hit but managed to throw the beast around and into the air. Unluckily for Damon and his Galactabeast, Kai's gorilla went right into him bringing him down to the ground. Then all Quakemaker had to do was fire a few spikes, trapping another two of the huge beasts.  
"Four down one to go" mocked Quakemaker, turning to his finally opponent, the Red Ranger and his lion.  
"Oh no" said Karone from the ground as she watched her friends being defeated one by one. She wanted to do something but had no zord of her own. All she could do was watch as Leo and his lion tried to make their way through the storm of needles that were being fired at them by Quakemaker. It only took a moment and then Leo's lion was on the ground like the rest, pinned to the ground by several needles.  
"Leo!" shouted Karone as she ran over to help her friend up off the ground. Leo took her hand and let her pull him up as the others joined them.  
"The Galactabeasts" said Maya with defeat and sadness in her voice, looking up at the trapped beasts.  
"What are we going to do?" asked Damon, looking over at Quakemaker who was now in the process of shooting the ground with his huge needles.  
"I don't know" said Kai.  
"Oh no" added Kendrix from his side. It was then it donned on Karone that she had the shuttle docked in the hanger with the Mega ship.  
"I'll be back in a minute, try and stall Quakemaker" said Karone running of towards the hanger.

It didn't take her long to reach the Mega ship and the shuttle. Sitting down in the one seat shuttle, Karone activated the engines and then took off with the Mega ship behind her.  
"Please work" muttered Karone to herself as she activated the link between the shuttle and the Mega ship. Once the light flashed green, Karone smiled and flicked the combination switch. As the Mega ship began to transform behind her and she moved the shuttle above and behind the Mega ship. Once ready, and once the Mega ship had transformed, Karone transformed the shuttle into the head of Megazord and combined with the Mega ship to form the Astro Megazord.  
"Awesome!" shouted Karone in joy as she took control of the Megazord and flew it over towards Terra Venture. Landing the Astro Megazord down the street from Quakemaker, Karone felt confident that she could take on this monster.  
"What is this?" asked Quakemaker looking at the new Megazord that had appeared. Karone readied the Megazord for battle while Quakemaker growled at the Astro Megazord. "Never mind. Time to die!" shouted Quakemaker firing several spikes at the Astro Megazord. Karone moved the two joy sticks and the Astro Megazord rolled to the left, dodging the spikes.  
"My turn!" shouted Karone as she pressed a button and a sword appeared in the Astro Megazord's hand.  
"Astro Megazord saber" announced Karone as she pushed forwards the joy sticks and the Astro Megazord charged forwards. Karone pressed the button on top the right joy stick and lashed out with the sword. The sword slashed Quakemaker across the chest forcing him back and then attacked again, this time hitting the alien's left arm.  
"Take this!" shouted Quakemaker as he unleashed several spikes that sent the Astro Megazord flying back and on to the ground. Groaning as the Megazord hit the ground, Karone pulled herself together and got back up.  
"Time to finish this" said Karone readying the Astro Megazord for a game winning attack.  
"Astro Megazord saber slash!" announced Karone as she typed in a code and the sword began to glow. She pushed the joy sticks forwards and pressed down on both the buttons. With that the engines at the back of the Megazord charged and fired out the back of the Megazord pushing it forwards at full force. With no time to react, all Quakemaker could do was stand and take the hit, with the Astro Megazord saber slashing through him. And with that Quakemaker was destroyed. Karone let go of the controls and leaned back in the seat, sighing with relief.

"How could she have escaped?" demanded Scorpius from his chair as he threw two nearby Sting Wingers across the room with his long tentacles.  
"She over powered me" said Trakeena looking down in disappointment.  
"My princess, I'm so sorry for happened to you" said Scorpius, tenderly stroking his daughter with one of his slimy tentacles. Trakeena looked up with a half smile and held the tentacle in both her hands.  
"You were right father. We should have just destroyed Astronema when we had the chance" admitted Trakeena.  
"We will deal with her later. For Now we have this new Power Ranger to deal with" started Scorpius but stopped when Furio walked in.  
"Furio!" shouted Scorpius throwing his tentacles up in the air, "Who could you let one Ranger over power you and gain control of that Astro Megazord?!"  
"Scorpius sir, it wasn't my fault. Karone showed up with-"  
"Karone!" shouted Scorpius his anger flaring as he started throwing anything he could at Furio.  
"Scorpius please" said Furio using both his arms to block the objects that were being thrown at him.  
"I'm running out of patience Furio!"  
"I promise Scorpius, I will not fail you again" said Furio  
"For you shake you better not" shouted Scorpius as Furio retreated out the room.

Karone hadn't stopped biting her lower lip since Kendrix and Maya had dragged her from her room to the guys' place for a victory meal. She had been thinking about what to tell her friends when she had been interrupted by Maya and Kendirx.  
Now she was seated on the sofa, elbows on her knees and fiddling with her thumbs. Still trying to figure out what to tell her closest friends, she didn't want to lose them. Not after everything they had all been through. But if she didn't tell them and they found out that she had been lying to them, it would probably end worse.  
"You ok there Karone?" asked Damon from the kitchen, he had been drooling over the food and Kai had told him to go away. Karone's response was a half smile and nod. At this point the gang became concerned.  
"What's up?" asked Kendrix sitting down on the sofa next to Karone.  
"It's-It's just something I've got to tell you" Karone managed to say. If just saying that was so hard how on earth would she gain the strength to tell them what was really bothering her.  
"It's ok" said Maya reassuringly, sensing Karone's discomfort.  
"Ye, we're all friends here" added Leo, leaving the kitchen area with Kai and joining the others in the lounge area. Karone sharply got to her feet and made her way over to the window, looking out into space. She knew she couldn't look her friends in the eye and tell them what she had to.  
"... You all know that I care deeply for all of you, right?" asked Karone, not looking back at her friends.  
"Of course we do" said Kendrix  
"I've got something to say, and I need you to just listen please" said Karone, looking down at her hands she could see them shaking as did Leo.  
"You're shaking" pointed out Leo concerned.  
"Just listen" pleaded Karone, looking at Leo's reflection in the glass. She took a deep breath before she continued, not that it helped. "As you know, I'm an honoured guest on board Terra Venture-"  
"You are?" said Damon surprised. Kai nudged him in the arm quickly indicating for him to be quiet. If Damon thought that was surprising then he was in for a shock.  
"Yes. But none of you know why... I'm from KO-35, another human colony. My brother is also from KO-35... My brother was Andros, the Red Space Ranger. For the first few years of my life, I was happy with my brother. But then I was kidnapped by Darkonda and I lost everything" everyone listened closely as Karone told her story, all not liking the tone or where it was going.  
"I was raised by Ecliptor, he was about the one good thing in my life from that point on. He raised me as his own daughter. He raised me, to be evil. To be Astronema" at the famous name everyone looked at Karone with horror and confusion.  
"You-you can't be Astronema" said Kai in disbelief.  
"Ye, you're good and kind" added Kendrix.  
"I wasn't always" Karone said, continuing with her story. "I was the princess of evil, heir to the throne of Dark Specter" the name made her and the other's shudder "To earn that place I had to-I had to-I" just thinking about what Karone had done as Astronema made her want to cry, she put her hand over her mouth to stop herself from crying out. But nothing could stop the tears in her eyes.  
"Eventually I was tasked with destroying Earth" said Karone, continuing with the story, skipping over her evil deeds. "It was there I fought the Space Rangers. You know the rest. Then My brother freed me from Astronema and we returned to KO-35"  
"That's what you meant when you said it was your brother's ship. You knew exactly what it was" said Kai in realisation, to which Karone nodded, still looking out the window.  
"But-but how could you be Astronema. I was there that day, when she attacked. You look nothing like her" said Leo stepping up to Karone in protest of her story. "You're not her"  
"It's true I looked different when I was Astronema, but I am her" Karone said, feeling the tears coming down her checks. "Only a small group of people know what I did" said Karone, having to pause for a moment to stop herself from crying.  
"For a long time now I've been having dreams, of Astronema. My brother recommended coming here, to get away from it. But it's only been getting worse. I can feel her, in my head. Trying to get out, trying to break free and take over again. For a brief moment today... she... she... she was back" finished Karone before letting out the cry and dropping her head into her hands as the tears poured out. Her friends had no idea how to react, they just stood and watched the pour girl cry, cry about her past.  
Eventually Karone felt a hand on her shoulder and was then pulled into a hug by Leo. Nothing was said by anyone. All that could be heard in the room was Karone's crying.


	7. Lost Control

_Happy New Year one and all! And as promised, here's the second chapter of the week. Will try to upload another two chapters next week but may not as I've got exams to revise for. But once they're out of the way I'll get back to uploading a new chapter once a week.  
Once again Happy New Year and enjoy the new chapter._

 **Chapter 7: Lost Control**

Once again Karone was forced to listen to her friends pounding on the door, trying to talk to her.  
"Come on Karone" shouted Maya through the door, her voice slightly muffled.  
"We just want to talk" added Damon banning on the door.  
"Go away!" shouted Karone from her bed. She had had no sleep at all last night and hadn't left her bed since. It was long past lunch time and her friends were starting to worry, thus why they were trying to talk to her. But Karone wasn't in a talking mood and had been ignoring her friends for the last ten minutes, hoping they would just leave.  
"Karone please!" shouted Leo but Karone was having none of it.  
"Just leave me ALONE!" shouted Karone looking at the door, her eyes flaring with purple flames. Little did she know that she had just sent her three friends flying with her telekinetic powers into the opposite wall. With no further knocking after her outburst, Karone lay back down on her bed and closed her eyes.

"What the heck was that?" asked Damon as he got off the ground.  
"Probably Karone's telekinetic powers" answered Leo as he too got up, the two then helped Maya up off the ground.  
"So what do we do?" asked Maya looking at the door.  
"Leave her alone for now" said Leo leading his friends away.  
"I'm worried about her" said Maya looking back down the corridor.  
"Me too, but there's no way she'll let us in" said Leo.  
"Ye, with those powers she'll tear us apart" committed Damon, to which Leo spun around to face Damon.  
"Don't talk about her like that!" snapped Leo before storming off ahead.  
"What?" said Damon confused and looking to Maya for answers. Maya just gave him a look of stupidity and walked off after Leo. "Seriously, what I do?" asked Damon following Maya.  
"You were implying that Karone was going to kill us" said Maya not looking back, a little annoyed at Damon herself for what he had said.  
"Ye, because she could" argued Damon to which Maya spun on her heels to face him.  
"Yes. It's also something that Astronema would do" whispered Maya, not wanting people to over here.  
"But she's not her" said Damon. At that point it clicked in Maya's head what Damon was getting at. "If we start treating her differently because of this then she'll think we all see Astronema" explained Damone, to which Maya smiled.  
"That's sweet Damon"  
"Well..." said Damon looking at the ground a little embraced.  
"Perhaps you should go back and try talking to her" said Maya patting Damon on the chest before walking off.  
"Wait, why me?" asked Damon.  
"Because you have a way with words" finished Maya as she vanished around a corner, laughing a little. Reluctantly Damon then made his way back to Karone's room to once again try and get her to talk.

"Furio!" shouted Scorpius, to which Furio instantly came running into the room. Ever since their last chat, Furio had been hiding away, scared of what Scorpius might do to him if he caught sight of him. However that didn't mean he was going to ignore him if he called.  
"Yes my lord" said Furio bowing.  
"I want you to get the schematics for that Astro Megazord. With that kind of technology we'll be able to destroy the Rangers and Terra Venture in an instant" informed Scorpious as he indicated for Furio to rise, and so he did.  
"It will be done" said Furio before swiftly existing. He didn't intend on staying any longer than he needed to, especially with Furio so angry with him over his recent failures. Once Furio was gone, Trakeena emerged from the shadows and approached her father.  
"You think he can pull it off?" asked Trakeena, with a thin smile.  
"If he doesn't then he'll be destroyed" vowed Scorpius.  
"Well if he fails perhaps I can become you're right hand" said Trakeena.  
"NO!" shouted Scorpius in anger.  
"But why?" moaned Trakeena like a child not getting her way.  
"You are my princess" Scorpius said stroking his daughter's face with his tentacle. "If anything were to happen to you..." the thought made him shiver "That is way you will not be going near the battlefield or these Rangers, especially Astronema".  
"Fine" snapped Trakeena before storming out. Trakeena knew that her father wouldn't be able to keep an eye on her forever and that when he let down his guard she would head down to Terra Venture to prove herself. Maybe by destroying one of the Rangers her father would finally recognise her for the evil warrior she was. But for now all she could do was walk about the ship in a mood, while Furio got to have all the fun.

"Karone" said Damon quietly with a soft knock at her door. "Karone" he said again, a little louder and with a harder knock. He then shouted her name and banged on the door, quickly closing his eyes and waiting for his body to be thrown across the corridor. But nothing happened.  
"Karone, look" started Damon, leaning his head against the door, hopping she was listening. "I'm not going to pretend to know what you're going through. I don't think anyone knows what it's like to be you, but you have to know that it doesn't change how we all feel about you. You're our friend. Your past doesn't change that" The sound of movement behind the door made Damon stop for a moment but when nothing more happened he continued. "We know you're scared. Heck I'd say you're terrified, so are we. But not of you. You are not Astronema. You're Karone. My friend" then Damon felt the door slide and lifted his head. Behind the door stood Karone, her checks damp from the tears that had been coming from her painful red eyes. Damon could see that she had just been crying from the little but of water still in her eye as it slowly moved out and down her face, and from her lower lip that was shaking ever so slightly.  
"Damon..." said Karone followed by a large sniff to stop her nose from running.  
"Ye" said Damon simply to acknowledge her.  
"...Thank you" and with that Karone fell forwards into Damon's arms, were he hugged her.  
"It's ok" Damon said while rubbing her back. "We're here for you, never forget that" Karone didn't say anything but Damon could feel her head nodding on his shoulder.  
After quickly calling everyone on his morpher, Damon lead the fragile Karone to his room, were the others were waiting for him and Karone. Damon let Karone go in first but she stopped when she saw everyone else. Trying to Leave Damon blocked her path, and gave her a friendly smile. It didn't make Karone feel any better though. She was still scared of how her friends now felt about her. It was easier when it was just her and Damon.  
"It's all good. Remember, we're your friends" said Damon. Karone nodded again before slowly walking in and sitting down at the edge of the sofa, as far from the others she could get without being rude. Damon sat himself down on the other sofa with Maya and Kai while Kendrix and Leo sat on the sofa Karone was on.  
"You ready to talk?" asked Leo softly, trying to not over whelm Karone with his first question. Karone's silence was his answer. Leo looked to the others but no one had anything to add.  
"We're worried Karone" continued Leo leaning over to her and putting a hand on her shoulder. Karone quickly pushed the hand off her shoulder and slide right to the edge of the sofa, out of Leo's reach.  
"Come on Karone, talk to us" pleaded Kendrix. Damon and Maya were the first to notice Karone's tears.  
"Guys, I think some of us should leave" suggested Maya.  
"Karone, you can always go back to your room" said Damon, but still Karone said nothing. She was lost in her own world, which worried her friends. After last night they were starting to think that Karone's world was a bad place to be.  
"We've got to get back to work" said Kendrix as she and Kai got up. "We'll be back later" Kendrix promised as she left with Kai behind her.  
"I think we'll make some food" said Damon as he pulled Leo away from Karone and over to the kitchen. Maya watched Karone for a moment before following her friends into the kitchen.  
Karone knew her friends meant well, but right now all she wanted to do was run away. As far away as possible, to some remote planet were she could grow old and die alone. Somewhere were Astronema couldn't hurt anyone. Here, Karone was endangering everyone.  
Rubbing her eyes to wipe away the tears, once done she was shocked at what stood before her. A woman in black leather from neck to toe, with metal gauntlets and beast plate. Karone couldn't see her face but the purple hair resting on her shoulders gave it away. Karone would have screamed but something was stopping her, stopping her from doing anything. She just sat on the sofa looking ahead, frozen.  
"What's the matter Karone?" asked Astronema bending down to look at her better self. Her freckled face highlighted with glitter on her checks and sliver head band. Karone's misery seemed to make Astronema smile happily. When no answer came Astronema just let out a little giggle. "Where's all you're back talk now? I mean look at you. You're what you always wanted to be. A Power Ranger" said Astronema with a mischievous smile.  
"I won't let you" said Karone, knowing what Astronema was thinking. Her voice was low so that her friends couldn't hear her form the kitchen.  
"So you're starting to listen to my thoughts then" Astronema said intrigued and grinning.  
"If you're going to do it then why shouldn't I?" asked Karone, glaring at her evil self. Astronema didn't answer, only smile evilly at her innocent naive self.  
"So what am I thinking?" asked Astronema leaning in towards Karone with a concentrated facial expression, trying to keep Karone out. Karone sat on the sofa trying to read her other half's mind, but to no avail. "Don't worry, you'll have plenty of time to practise once I have control of my body again" said Astronema with a smile.  
"I don't need to read your mind. I know you're going to try and use my new powers to hurt my friends" answered Karone.  
"Clever girl" said Astronema with an excited look in her eye, at the thought of doubling her power. "But just because you know my plan, doesn't mean you'll be able to stop me or protect your friends" said Astronema looking over to the three other Rangers in the kitchen. Karone followed her gaze and for the first time her expression changed from a sad emotionless one, to one of anger.  
"Leave them alone!" shouted Karone looking back at Astronema who was smiling like a Cheshire cat.  
"Karone" came Leo's voice suddenly. Looking over she could see that Leo had appeared at her side with his hand on her knee, concerned.  
"Leo... she..." Karone was lost for words looking back and forth between Leo and were Astronema had been.  
"What's wrong?" asked Leo as Maya and Damon came over to join the two.  
"Astronema, she's-she's" Karone said frantically in a panic.  
"Astronema's gone Karone" said Maya trying to calm her down, but it was no good. Karone was to scared about what Astronema had planned for her friends.  
"She was there, she said-" Karone said but Damon stopped her.  
"Karone, you're tired. You haven't slept for over a day now. Come and lie on my bed, get some sleep" said Damon as he and Leo pulled Karone up.  
"No, I... I..." Karone said tailing off as she dropped, luckily Leo caught her before she hit the floor.  
"Help me Damon" ordered Leo. So with Leo holding the shoulders and Damon holding the legs, the two took Karone over to Damon's bed and lay her down. "Get some rest" said Leo softly, pushing her hair off her beautiful face, before giving her a light kiss on the forehead. The three then returned to the kitchen, keeping their voices down as not to disturb the sleeping Karone.

A few hours later Karone awoke to the pleasant small of freshly baked cookies. Flickering her eye lashes she lifted her head, following her nose off the bed and towards the kitchen. Damon looked up as he took the cookies off the hot tray and put them down on a clean plate.  
"Hello sleepy head" said Damon as he took the last cookie off the tray and put the hot tray aside.  
"Smells good" commented Karone, leaning over the plate and taking in a deep breath of fresh cookie air. As the smell entered her nostrils Karone couldn't help but groan in pleasure from the delicious smell.  
"Go ahead, have one. Careful they're hot" warned Damon as he took off his oven mitts. Karone carefully picked the top cookie off the pile with her thumb and index finger. After one bite she knew they were near perfect.  
"These are great Damon!" said Karone overjoyed as she took another bite out of the cookie.  
"Glad you like them, took over three hours to make" said Damon taking one of the cookies and joining Karone in a snack. "Sleep well?" to which Karone shrugged, indicating that she didn't sleep all that well.  
"Where are the others?" asked Karone as she finished off the cookie.  
"Maya dragged Leo off to talk and Kai and Kendrix are still at work" answered Damon taking another cookie after Karone. Karone looked at Damon as he eat, wanting to talk but unsure.  
"Damon" Karone said nervously. Damon instantly spotted the distress in Karone's voice and eyes.  
"What's wrong with the cookies?" asked Damon looking at his fresh cookies with disappointment.  
"No-no-no. It's not the cookies it's... It's about what happened early, before you and Leo put me in bed" said Karone, looking at Damon nervously. "I saw Astronema"  
"Karone, it was just your imagination" said Damon finishing the cookie.  
"No. Like I said yesterday I've been having dreams of Astronema. But I've also been seeing her. She's been talking to me. She..." Karone wasn't sure if she wanted to continue.  
"Karone, you know that me and the others will help when in any way we can" said Damon with a friendly smile and nod for her to continue.  
"When I was captured by Scorpius, this monster he... he messed with my head. And for a while, I'm not sure how long. Astronema was in control" Karone watched as Damon looked at her, carefully thinking about how to respond. "And now I'm seeing her when I'm awake. She's saying she's going to hurt you and the others"  
"We can protect ourselves Karone" said Damon with a brave smile, but Karone wasn't satisfied.  
"Not against her you can't" said Karone looking at Damon with fear in her eyes, which passed on to Damon. "Not only does she have her original powers but now mine" Karone said while holding up her morpher.  
"Oh" said Damon suddenly realising the danger. "So... what do you want to do about this?" asked Damon looking scared.  
"I don't know" Karone answered honestly, looking down at the plate of cookies before her. Just then both their morphers beeped and the pressed down on the communications buttons' on their morphers.  
"Damon here" he answered, while Karone just listened.  
"Damon we need you, some weird light sucking thing is attacking the city" said Kai down the communications line.  
"On my way" said Damon as he ended the call. "You coming?"  
"I'm a Ranger" said Karone, with her first sincere smile of the day.  
"Let's go" added Damon and with that the two ran off to join their friends.

Meanwhile in the centre of the city a white skinned alien was attacking nearby civilians. The monster was thin and tall with a long neck and rounded head. It's arms looked heavy and strong, although that could have been the black armour. One his right arm was a gauntlet that covered his three fingered hand and on his left was a large cannon like weapon with blue vine like structures coming out and reconnecting with his left shoulder and back. As for his chest it was fairly exposed unlike his legs which were covered in think black, scale like armour up to the hip.  
"Mmmm, running low on ammunition am I. Better top up" said the alien as he aimed his cannon arm at a nearby street lamp, in a second all the light from the lamp vanished into the cannon and turned the blue veins to yellow veins. "There we go, looks like I'm ready to continue my destruction" said the alien, but looking there was no one left to terrorise or kill. "We'd everyone go?" asked the alien to himself just as Kai and Kendrix stepped out in front of the alien.  
"Stop right there!" ordered Kai.  
"We've got you surrounded" added Kendrix.  
"You two?" said the alien with a mocking laugh.  
"More like six" shouted Leo from behind the alien, and when he turned around he saw the other four Rangers.  
"This should be fun" said the alien before firing two shoots of white light energy out of his cannon towards Leo and the three other Rangers. Luckily the four managed to dive aside before the blasts hit, avoiding any serious damage.  
"Who is this guy?" asked Damon as he and the others got up.  
"I'm Lightblaster" said the alien as he absorbed the light from another street lamp, making himself even more powerful.  
"Think it's time we morphed" suggested Maya.  
"I agree" added Karone, pulling out her purple phoenix feather.  
"Alright. Go Galactic!" shouted Leo and the other four Rangers while Karone shouted "Phoenix Power!" and in a colourful flash they all transformed into their respective Ranger suits, ready for battle. "You're going down Lightblaster!" shouted Leo as he and the other Rangers pulled out their sabers. Leo and Maya charged first, while Damon and Karone held back.  
"Take this!" shouted Lightblaster firing to two shots of white energy at Leo and Maya. The two managed to deflect the blasts with their Quasar Sabers and then tried to hit Lightblaster with a downwards slash. Unluckily thought, Lightblaster managed to block both the sabers with his cannon arm. "That all you got" mocked Lightblaster.  
"Not a chance!" shouted Karone as she and Damon jumped above Leo and Maya before hitting Lightblaster's upper chest and forcing him back. While Lightblaster stumbled back, Leo and Maya took advantage of the situation. As Karone and Damon landed, they bent down allowing Leo and Maya to roll over them and then land several hits on Lightblaster. Once they finished their attack Kai and Kendrix came in for the final tag team attack, they bent down low and swung with their sabers at Lightblaster's legs. As Lightblaster fell to the floor, Kai and Kendrix backed up to their team mates were they all struck a battle pose.  
"What-what-what?" stuttered the alien laying defeated on the floor.  
"You're done" said Leo pointing the tip of his saber towards Lightblaster.  
"Never" snapped the alien pointing his cannon at the Rangers and firing. The Rangers tried to move out of the way, but the shot came to fast and the six of them were sent flying across the street and into the wall.  
"Didn't see that coming" muttered Damon as he got up, using his Quasar Saber to balance himself.  
"I'm really starting to hate this guy" commented Kendrix as Kai helped her up.  
"Come on Rangers!" shouted Lightblaster as he walked towards them, happy with his small victory. "Aren't you having a, 'Blast'" he said firing off another shot, which the Rangers managed to dodge this time.  
"Phoenix Feathers!" shouted Karone as she pulled out three purple feathers and threw them through the air towards Lightblaster. The feathers slashed against Ligthblaster, throwing him off balance and allowing the Rangers a chance to counter attack.  
"Red Quasar Saber Slash!" announced Leo as he ran his fingers up the blade of his saber, leaving a glowing red trail along the blade. He then lifted the saber above his head and slashed down, the wave of red energy moving through the air and directly hit Lightblaster, sending him back to the ground.  
"Let's finish him guys" said Kai to the other three Rangers, to which they nodded in agreement. The four charged ready to finish Lightblaster, but before they got close enough they were shot down by a small army of Sting Wingers that had appeared.  
"Where'd they come from?" asked Maya as Karone helped her and Kendrix up while Leo helped Kai and Damon.  
"Looks like I've got you out numbered" said Lightblaster looking back at the Sting Wingers with victorious smile.  
"It doesn't matter" said Kai defiantly, "We'll take you all on"  
"Right" said the others in agreement swinging their sabers around to battle position, ready to fight.  
"We'll see. Sting Wingers, Attack!" ordered Lightblaster, pointing towards the Rangers and the small army charged. The Rangers also charged and individually took on a portion of the Sting Winger army.  
Karone quickly blocked a Sting Winger trying to hit her with its bladed hand. She then spun around, ducking and slashing the Sting Winger across the chest. She then looked around and saw that several Sting Wingers were descending on her, quickly she cartwheeled out of the way and the group bumped into each other. She then cut down and hit a Sting Winger before kicking another Sting Winger trying to sneak up on her from behind.  
Once again Karone noticed that the Sting Wingers were surrounding her. Putting her Phoenix Saber back in its sheath, and then pulling out several Phoenix Feathers, holding them in-between her fingers.  
"Phoenix Feathers!" announced Karone as she spun around on her heels throwing the feathers in all directions destroying a large portion of the Sting Wingers with one attack. One of the Sting Wingers managed to dodge a feather which was then on course to hit Damon. Luckily he saw it coming and ducked under it before finishing off two Sting Wingers and then looking over to Karone.  
"Watch it Karone!" shouted Damon jokingly.  
"Sorry" said Karon feeling a wave of guilt pass over her at the thought of hurting her friends. Then Karone felt the ringing in her ears, sharply followed by the pain in her head. She groaned as she dropped to her knees holding her helmet. Luckily the Sting Wingers seemed to be ignoring her and focusing on the other Rangers while she was defenceless. "What's going on?" said Karone as she felt the world begin to spin and blacken.  
"You're going to take a break of driving for now" came Astronema's voice, as if Karone was thinking it herself.  
"What, no" said Karone, trying to fight it off. But it was too late. Her vision was going black and she was barely able to keep herself up on her knees. As the world went black and Karone was pushed to the back of her mind, the first thing that came out of her lips was.  
"Time for some fun" said Astronema, using Karone's lips.  
"NNNNNOOOOO!" shouted Karone from the back of her mind. But no one, not even Astronema, could hear her. She was trapped, like she had been for so much of her life, and now here she was again.

A mad grin spread across Astronema's face as she lifted her head. She was back in control again. About time to, she thought. Looking at her hands she still had all of Karone's Ranger powers. She wiggled her fingers, getting a feel for her body, and some sparkling purple dust fell away. Good, she still had her powers as well. This was going to be fun.  
Suddenly she was brought out of her thoughts by a Sting Winger that knocked her aside with its large stinger arm. Rolling across the ground and stopping on her chest, Astronema glared at the Sting Winger, pointlessly as she still had a hamlet covering her face. Pushing herself up of the ground, Astronema was about to use her own powers to destroy the Sting Winger but then she remembered she had these new Ranger powers. Might as well use them, she thought.  
"Phoenix Feathers" said Astronema with less enthusiasm than Karone normally would, as she pulled out three feathers. She then sharply threw them at the Sting Winger that had attacking her, plus a few extra just for good measure. The feathers hit, sending sparks flying from the Sting Wingers as they fell to the ground defeated.  
"Nice work Karone!" shout Maya as she took out another two Sting Wingers. Astronema looked at the Yellow Ranger with her head cocked. So stupid, she thought. It would probably take them hours to figure out it was her and not Karone.  
"Thanks" said Astronema in her best Karone impression, which sounded completely fake, but in the heat of battle no one seemed to notice.  
Back to the battle, the last of the Sting Wingers were being defeated at the hands of the other Rangers and the last three were heading for Astronema. She elegantly pulled out the Phoenix Saber with one hand and twirled it as she slowly stepped towards the three Sting Wingers.  
"Say bye, bye" whispered Astronema before slashing with just one hand and destroying the three with a single hit of purple energy. The saber had sent out a purple energy wave, mixed with the Phoenix Saber's power and a bit of Astronema's. The Sting Wingers didn't stand a chance.  
"WHOA!" said Leo jumping just as the wave of energy almost hit him, Astronema granted, annoyed it had missed but no one heard. "Great job Karone" said Leo as the other Rangers joined him. Once altogether Leo said "Power Down" and the five Ranger transformed back to their normal civilian state. But Astronema didn't.  
"You ok Karone?" asked Kendrix, noticing she hadn't demorphed.  
"Super" said Astronema, the other's noticing that there was something different in her voice. Before they could react Astronema swiped forward with the Phoenix Saber sending out another purple energy wave that hit the Rangers sending them rolling across the ground violently.  
"What the-" said Kai with confusion after he and the others stopped rolling across the street. Astronema said nothing, just admired her handy work. The Rangers now lay on the ground covered in burses and burn marks, and from just one attack as well. The thought made Astronema smile mischievously behind her visor.  
"Karone, what are you doing?" asked Leo as he got up, clutching his left shoulder. Astronema couldn't help but start to laugh as she accidently demorphed. The Ranger's looked at her with such confusion, like she was insane. Of course all they saw was Karone, in her black leather cloths and blond hair, cute freckles, laughing like it was some kind of joke. But the laugh changed to one of evil and cruelty, with Astronema smiling menacingly at them.  
Damon was the first to take a few steps forward, ahead of the others, narrowing his eyes at Karone, as if looking at something completely different. It was then he remembered what Karone had been talking to him about back at the apartment, before they had been called out.  
"Astronema" said Damon, his voice full of dread and sadness. To which Astronema, tapped her noise with her index finger, indicating he was right.  
"Cleaver Green Ranger" said Astronema pleased with him, like rewarding a child for answering a question right. The Rangers were speechless, this made Astronema giggle again. "What's the matter, cat got your tongue Rangers" scanning their faces, she could see a mixture of emotions. From fear to sadness, on others it was anger or seriousness. Astronema's facial expression however was just a pleasant smile of satisfaction, happily messing with the Ranger's heads.  
"Let her go" said Leo finally stepping forwards, so that he stood next to Damon, his face serious.  
"Why?" asked Astronema, dragging out the word as she said it.  
"That's not your body, its Karone's" answered Leo. Astronema pondered for a moment, thinking of a response. She put her right hand on her hip and her left on her chin, rubbing her fingers on it as to indicate her thinking.  
"I think you'll find that I was here first" replied Astronema, with a more serious expression than she had been using.  
"You were never here first, Karone was. You were just created to be evil" said Leo taking another step forward.  
"Aren't we all" said Astronema with a shrug.  
"No, Karone wasn't. Now give her back her body" said Leo pointing his finger at Astronema. Suddenly Astronema inhaled quickly, as if something was changing inside her, clutching at her throat.  
"Karone..." said Leo, tilting his head as he took another step forward.  
"Leo" said Karone, her voice faint inside her own mouth.  
"Karone!" said Leo, ignoring all reason and rushing over to Karone, holding her. "You can do it you can push her out" he said with encouragement.  
"Leo... Leo... I... I...I'm back" said Karone with a final push through and a shake of the body.  
"Karone!" said Leo, relieved and happy as he looked into her eyes.  
"You really are stupid aren't you Red Ranger" said Astronema, as the happy free smile of Karone turned into the lying grin of Astronema. Leo's face fell to a saddened and depressed expression, but that's all he had time for as Astronema quickly sent him flying with a pock of her purple glowing finger. Leo flew through the air and hit Damon, who broke his fall.  
While Astronema laughed at how she had played Leo, the others helped Leo and Damon up. They all knew what they had to do, but none of them were sure they could, not to Karone. When Astronema finally stopped laughing she smiled at the Rangers, tilting her head.  
"Let's make this more interesting" said Astronema with raised eyebrows, like she had just had a brilliant idea. She reached her hand down her back pocket and pulled out the Phoenix feather, holding it out for the Rangers to see. They all knew what she was about to do.  
"NO!" shouted Leo as he tried to rush forwards and stop her, but his friends rightly held him back. He would be destroyed instantly if he ran at her while she was the Purple Ranger and he was just in civilian mode.  
"Phoenix Power" said Astronema as she slowly pulled the feather through the morpher, a purple glow emerging from the morpher and growing and growing until it consumed her. Before the light blinded them the Rangers, they all saw the evil grin across their friend's face.  
Once the light faded away, there stood Astronema, the Purple Ranger. She removed the Phoenix Saber from its sheath and twirled it around twice before taking a hold of it firmly in one hand.  
"Come on then Rangers. Wouldn't want this to be too quickly" said Astronema, the Rangers all feeling her evil glare at them while picturing her thin lipped grin. Kai held up his morpher ready to morpher but Kendrix pulled it down before he could morph.  
"We can't" Kendrix said in protest, "That's not just Astronema we're fighting, it's Karone as well"  
"We don't have a choice Kendrix" snapped Kai.  
"He's right" agreed Leo, "We have to stop her from hurting anyone"  
"You wouldn't kill me. Would you Leo?" asked Astronema in a sweet teasing voice.  
"No" said Leo firmly, "But I won't let you hurt anyone else either"  
"That's fine. Because right now the only ones I want to hurt is you five" said Astronema. There was a pause before Leo nodded to the others and they all morphed.  
"Go, Galactic!" the announced as the mixture of light grew and faded leaving behind the Power Rangers. Another pause, a hope that Karone would regain control and end this before it started.  
"Come on then, I don't have all day" said Astronema calmly, but secretly egger to destroy Karone's friends.  
"IYA!" shouted Leo and the others as they charged towards Astronema. They each individually dived past her swinging with their Sabers, however not one hit landed as Astronema easily deflected every attack. Once all the Ranger had past she turned on her heels to face them.  
"And here I thought you were meant to be Oh so powerful. I guess Karone just has too much faith in you" said Astronema in her sweet taunting voice.  
"Don't talk about her" snapped Leo, to which Astronema grinned. She was getting to him.  
"Why? Afraid I'll say something I shouldn't" replied Astronema, she stopped as the Rangers attacked again this time in groups. Damon and the girls came at her, but Astronema easily dealt with them by throwing an individual Phoenix feather at each of them. The three hit the ground as if they had just been hit with a boulder and lay defeated. Then Kai and Leo came at her, jumping through the air and slashing downwards with their sabers. Astronema managed to block the attack with her Phoneix Saber, only using one hand. With Kai open for an attack, Astronema pointed her left hand's index finger at Kai's chest and shot out a blast of purple energy energy, putting him down. This was she wanted, her and Leo. To destroy Karone's closest and first true friend, that would make it easier to hold control once he was gone.  
"Kai!" Leo shouted looking back at his fallen friend. To his surprise Astronema then pulled away, stepping backwards. She then turn to flee and began to run out of the city, Leo didn't think twice about following her. He hated to abandon his friends but he had to make sure that Astronema didn't hurt anyone. Not for their sake but for Karone's, she would never be able to live with herself if Astronema had hurt someone again. So he followed her, out of the city dome and into the mountain dome.

While the Rangers fought, unbeknownst to them, Furio was sneaking through Terra Venture's hanger. Scorpius had ordered him to get the schematics for the Astro Megazord and Furio had no intention of failing him, especially considering how anger he already was with him.  
He'd been searching through the hanger for over several hours now, and had luckily not been caught. Even so he had found no trace of the Mega ship or shuttle. He was close to giving up, but knew if he did it would mean certain death for him. Coming to the quick and obvious conclusion Furio pressed on. He existed the hanger and entered the corridors hopping he would find some kind of secret passage, however unlikely.  
Suddenly halting, he could hear people talking up ahead. The talking was distant at first, but was now getting louder and defiantly coming towards him. Furio looked for a place to hid, if caught then the Rangers would come and he would be dead. He spotted a door ahead and ran to it, annoyingly it didn't open so Furio was forced to pry it open with his bare hands and then squeeze inside before it slammed shut. He listened against the door as the voices passed and then once they had he sighed, relaxing a little.  
He was about to leave when he looked back over for a moment and realised that he had found what he was looking for. He was in the hanger where the Rangers hid the Mega Ship. Furio wasted no time in rushing to the side of the ship and putting a device on the side. It was shaped like a tablet and as lines of data whizzed across the screen a lined picture of the Mega Ship appeared. And alone side it a picture of the Astro Megazord. Furio had what he had come for. Once the data pad finished its download of the Mega Ship and it's structure, Furio ripped it from the Mega Ship and teleported off Terra Venture and back to the Scorpion Stinger.

When Leo finally caught up to Astronema, atop one of the mountains, she had demorphered and stood once again as Karone. Leo followed her lead and demorphered, with his Quasar Saber still in hand encase she tried anything.  
"What's the matter Leo, don't trust me?" asked Astronema looking at the Quasar Saber.  
"You know I don't" answered Leo, "And don't call me Leo"  
"If it makes you feel better you can call me Astronema" she replied with a grin.  
"No" said Leo firmly, not wanting to talk, especially not to this villainess wearing his friend's face like a mask. Astronema just sniggered and began to circle, Leo did the same, always staying opposite her.  
"Tell me Red Ranger, everyone on this ship is from Earth, correct?" Leo's silence just made Astronema sure she was right. "In which case, they all know who I am. What I did"  
"What you nearly did" corrected Leo, still a little humour in him. Astronema narrowed her eyes at him, but continued none the less.  
"Still, they fear me. I could take over this whole place in a minute. Especially with this" said Astronema pulling out the Phoenix Saber and pointing it at Leo. "Or" she continued, thinking through her options "I could just destroy it"  
"We won't let you" said Leo, referring to himself, the other Rangers and the whole of Terra venture.  
"You're hardily a problem, as I've already proven" said Astronema with her head tilted and a little shake.  
"I'm still standing" pointed out Leo, still circling his adversary.  
"I see why Karone likes you, feisty... or stupid" said Astronema with a grin.  
"Most think stupid" said Leo, allowing himself a smile.  
"Not surprising" added Astronema, before slashing out with her saber, but Leo managed to block it, holding his saber with both hands. Astronema let off her attack and pulled back, Leo don't counter attack to her surprise and the two begin circling each other again.  
"Not bad Red Ranger" said Astronema, pleasantly surprised that he had blocked her attack. "Tell me though. What's your plan? You said you're self you won't kill me"  
"I've got a plan" said Leo, his face turning back to serious. Astronema smiled, thinking of what stupid idea this idiot thought was going to enable him to defeat her.  
"Let's see what you've got then" said Astronema, attacking quickly with a stab from her saber. Leo side stepped, and then went in for the attack which Astronema easily blocked. But the point of Leo's attack wasn't to hurt, but to push her back. Astronema quickly came to this relisation, she couldn't afford to lose ground. Twirling down she swiped at Leo's feet which forced Leo to back flip in order to avoid the attack. Astronema charged and slashed with her saber, now Leo was the one on retreat barely being able to block. One or two of the attacks managed to scratch him, causing blood to trickle out but nothing to serious. Suddenly he managed to swipe clean and fast with his saber, hitting Astronema's hand and sending the saber to the ground. Astronema stood still as Leo pointed the tip of his saber at her.  
"Very good" said Astronema pleased with his skills, "But not good enough" suddenly there was a purple outline of a staff like weapon in Astronema's hands and then with a flash the weapon appeared. With one swift and fluent move Astronema knocked Leo's saber from his hand and sent it off the mountain side, he was defenceless.  
"Whoops" said Astronema sarcastically with a smile. Leo was forced back by the advancing Astronema pointing her staff at him, in particular the red diamond tip. Looking back, Leo came to a halt, realising that he had run out of room to retreat. Behind him was now a rather large and probably fatal drop.  
"Looks like you've run out of space" pointed out Astronema who had also noticed the large drop, and was smiling like a mad woman. "Oh well" and with that Astronema forced her staff forwards, trying to push Leo off. But Leo wasn't going down without a fight. He leaned back and grabbed hold of the staff as not to fall. Astronema tried shaking the staff, but Leo's grip was too tight. So she flipped the staff over her head and Leo went over falling to the ground with a hard thud.  
He tried to get up but Astronema was on top of him to quickly pinning him to the ground. She pressed down her staff against Leo's neck and arms, while kneeling down on his chest, preventing any movement from him.  
"You lose" said Astronema pushing down harder on Leo's neck trying to stop him breathing. But Leo continued fighting and managed to prevent Astronema from chocking him. "Why won't you just die!" shouted Astronema clearly getting irritated with Leo as she applied more pressure with little improvement.  
"I could ask you the same thing, Astronema" said Leo as he fought back. Astronema glared at him baring her teeth in rage. Leaning in Leo couldn't tell whether she was just baring her teeth or smiling at him.  
"I'm going to enjoy watch you... watching you..." a look of shock and horror came across her face suddenly. "No...No...No, no, NO!" Astronema began to shouting, almost chanting. She began to shake her head trying to stay focused. Leo knew she wasn't faking, this was real.  
"Karone" said Leo quietly, looking for his friends eyes.  
"Shut up!" snapped Astronema as she rolled of Leo and her staff disappeared. Leo saw his chance and rolled towards the Phoenix Saber and grabbed it. He got up the saber in both hands ready, in case it was another of Astronema's tricks. But as he watched Astronema shaking her head and screaming, he slowly lowered the saber. It wasn't a trick, something was happening inside of her. Or someone. Karone.  
Kneeling down beside her, Leo dropped the saber behind him. In his reach just encase he needed it.  
"Karone" said Leo taking his friend's face in both his hands, but what he was looking at was not his friend. She was a twisted evil soul trying to hold on, her face growling and snarling at Leo. How do I help, thought Leo, looking into Karone's eyes hopping for answers. Then he decided to do what anyone in love would do to help their other. He pulled Karone towards him, opened his lips and kissed her. For a moment there was a struggle from Astronema, trying to pull away, but then Karone seemed to force the kiss to go on.  
Letting her head go, her hands gracefully ran from her hair, through Leo's before holding onto his face, just as he held hers. After a half a minute or so the two parted for breath. The first sight Karone saw was the look of worry on Leo, hoping his plan had worked. Karone smiled at him, her smile. Her soft loving smile that let him know it was her, and not Astronema. Almost instantly his face lit up like a Christmas tree and the two began kissing again. Closing their eyes and letting the moment take hold. The two continued kissing passionately as the holographic sun began to set in the mountain dome. Trying to make the moment last as long as they could.


	8. A True Red

**Chapter 8: A True Red**

It had been two weeks now since Leo and Karone had kissed and things had never been better. Scorpius had lunched no further attacks on Terra Venture, so essentially the Rangers had had two weeks off. No having to save Terra Venture from evil aliens, no Furio attacks. Heck even Astronema had been quiet. Karone's dreams for the last few days had been Astronema free, ever since she had kissed Leo.  
Just thinking about it made her cheeks turn hot red and put a dreamy smile across her face. The two had been inseparable since then, always together, holding hands and kissing when they thought their friends weren't looking. But they always saw them.  
As for Karone's friends, none of them blamed her for what had happened prior to Karone and Leo's kiss. When Astronema had taken over, they knew it was her messing with them and hurting them not Karone. Karone would never do something like that. Still the first few days after had been awkward, Karone felt responsible for all that had happened to her friends but they continually insisted that it wasn't her fault. But once her friends changed her mind, it had been nothing but good times since.

Karone awoke presently from another nightmare free night. She looked over at Leo who lay in the other half of her bed. She smiled at her friend...boyfriend... to be honest she didn't know what to call Leo. But she knew that she liked him, a lot.  
Leo opened his eyes and looked at Karone who had pulled her legs up and wrapped her arms around them to keep them worm. She had her pyjamas on, light blue shorts that almost looked white with a dark purple tank top. Her hair was messy and tangled, resting on her shoulders but Leo didn't mind. He liked waking up next Karone, no matter what her hair looked like. In some lights, Karone's messed up hair actually looked very pretty.  
"Morning" said Karone, smiling at him as she rolled onto her side so that her face was inches from Leo's.  
"Morning" replied Leo smiling back at her. He too was in his pyjamas, a red tank top with long grey pants. The two had only slept with each other the past two nights and that was all they had done, sleep.  
"Morning" said Damon as his head appeared behind Leo's. Karone laughed but Leo just looked over his shoulder at his friend shaking his head. The two nights they had been sleeping together they had spent in Leo's room. Karone was fine with it but Leo would prefer it if they could be alone. Plus Kai was getting annoyed with and Karone's constant giggling during the night.  
"Breakfast?" asked Damon holding up a plate of freshly baked pancakes above himself. Karone grabbed one and took a large bite out, nearly eating half the pancake.  
"Mmmm, delicious as always Damon" said Karone with an approving nod.  
"Thank you. You want one Leo?" asked Damon.  
"No" said Leo glaring at his friend, waiting for him to realise that he didn't want him here.  
"Alright, more for me" said Damon about to leave.  
"And me" said Karone biting down on her current pancake while grabbing another two from the pate. Once Karone finished, Damon walked over to the kitchen were Kai was sitting eating his breakfast. He had already showered and was dressed in his blue and grey command centre uniform, ready for the day's work. "Morning Kai" said Karone waving to her friend with a pancake in hand.  
"Morning" said Kai, not looking up from his breakfast or paper, sounding slightly moody. With nothing further said, Karone rested back down on the bed next to Leo, handing him one of her two pancakes. Leo took a bite from the pancake and tried to hide his delight from the taste. But Karone saw it and gave him a grin, which Leo couldn't help but smile at.  
"I think Kai's mad at us" said Karone before she started nibbling on her second pancake.  
"Maybe, but not much we can do about it" replayed Leo. Karone nodded in agreement. Truth be told they could have slept at Karone's, but she didn't trust herself to be alone with Leo in a bed. At least with Kai and Damon in the same room it was just hugs and kisses. Leo had been very respecting of that and had even offered to sleep on Karone's sofa at first. But she knew the sofa could easily become the bed and had said no. She just wanted to take things slow for the time being.  
Once they finished their pancakes they reluctantly got out of bed. Leo went first, swing his legs out and then accidently rolling out and landing on his face. Karone and the others laughed as Leo got up.  
"You ok?" asked Karone, looking down on him from the top bunk.  
"Great" answered Leo, shaking it off, and then walking into the kitchen and grabbing a bowl of cereal for himself. Karone, lingered in the bed for a moment watching her friends enjoy their breakfasts. She could have spent all day in bed, but now that Leo had left it felt empty. Groaning as she rolled out of bed, landing on her feet, she walked over to the kitchen were Damon passed her a plate with more of his pancakes on it. Karone thanked him before sitting down with the guys and eating. After a few minutes, Kai looked at his watch and put down his paper.  
"Got to go" said Kai, clearing away his breakfast just as there was a knock at the door. Once ready Kai walked over and opened it, reviling Kendrix standing on the other side. "Morning" said Kai politely.  
"Morning" repeated Kendrix, she too was dressed in Terra Venture's command centre uniform but hers was red and grey instead of blue. "Ready to go?" asked Kendrix.  
"You bet" said Kai grabbing his bag and slinging it over his shoulder. "See you guys later" shouted Kai as he closed the door behind him and Kendrix.  
"Bye" shouted the three remaining young adults in the kitchen before continuing with their breakfast.  
"So when are you guys going to tell him that you're going to start working at the command centre?" asked Damon as he finished his last pancake.  
"Tomorrow, we when we start" said Leo with a grin, which Karone matched. Damon just laughed. "So what are you two crazy kids up to today?" asked Damon as he cleared away the table.  
"Some training" said Leo to which Karone shook her head.  
"You've been over working yourself" said Karone, "We're starting work tomorrow, why don't you have an off day" suggested Karone as she sifted along, snuggling up to Leo.  
"No" said Leo defiantly, shaking his head "I have to make sure I'm ready for anything" said Leo getting up and heading over to his cupboard to get his cloths, leaving Karone and Damon in the kitchen. Once out of ear shot, Karone turned to Damon to talk.  
"I'm worried about him" said Karone quietly so that Leo didn't hear.  
"Seems ok to me" said Damon looking at him.  
"I don't know?" said Karone looking over at him, concerned.  
"Why don't you go with him, keep an eye on him" suggested Damon.  
"Good idea, thanks Damon" said Karone giving him a smile before going over to join the now half dressed Leo. He had gotten out of his pyjamas, and now had his jeans and socks on. "Mind if I come along to train with you?" asked Karone.  
"Sure" said Leo with a smile as he pulled his red shirt on over his head. He then sat himself down on Damon's bed and pulled on his shoes, ready to go. Karone had left her cloths on the sofa and had gone off to put them on, it didn't take long. Soon she was in her leather vest and pants with black boots on and her sliver choker. She had now added a purple headband to her normal clothing, a representation of her being the Purple Ranger.  
"You ready?" asked Karone as she pushed her hair back over her shoulders.  
"Yep. See you later Damon" said Leo as he walked out of the apartment with Karone right behind him, giving Damon a wave as she walked out.

Leo led Karone to the forest dome to start their training, Leo wanting to practise his hand to hand combat. The sun was shining bright today which illuminated the green leaves above their heads creating a mixture of green and yellow. Karone thought it was rather pretty. Looking back down from the sky at Leo, who had already taken up a fighting stance, Karone smiled.  
"You sure you want to fight me hand to hand?" asked Karone putting her hands on her hips, sounding confident. But then again with her phoenix powers, and her previous training, she was a force to be reckoned with.  
"Why, think you can take me?" responded Leo with the same confident smile as Karone. After a moment of consideration, Karone nodded in agreement and got herself in a fighting stance. After a moment Leo moved, flipping up and coming down with a forceful kick. Karone pushed off the ground, moving back and avoiding the attack. Leo then followed through with a spin kick which Karone ducked under.  
Now it was her turn to attack. She went for Leo, first with a left jab that he easily dodged and then with a low kick from the right which connected. With Leo off balance she spun around clockwise and stuck his legs with a hard kick, tripping him up.  
"Ye, I think I can take you" said Karone smugly, standing victoriously over Leo. However Leo wasn't done, using his arms he spring boarded himself off the ground and landed on his feet before charging straight into his attack. Karone had foolishly lowered her guard and Leo got a clean punch at her chest, winding her. Leo came at her with his second punch, but Karone managed to spin around it before clocking Leo in the side of the head with the back of her wrist.  
This was more intense than Karone had been expecting, she could see the fire in Leo's eyes. Like he was trying to prove something, this wasn't normal training.  
With Karone behind him Leo turned quickly knowing that he had to keep his eyes on an opponent like Karone. But she was gone. Leo shook his head, thinking it was his eyes messing with him, but no, she was gone. Leo took a few cautious steps forwards, peering behind trees in case she was planning to jump him. She wasn't there though. He waited for an indication of where Karone could be; a rustle of leaves, a snapping twig or even her breathing. Silence. Leo clenched his jaw, worried about where Karone had gotten too.  
Then came the rustling of leaves from above and suddenly Karone was on top of him, like a child getting a piggy back ride, laughing. Leo spun around violently trying to get Karone off him, after one force full shake she came off. She hadn't had a good grip to begin and her laughing didn't help in her concentration. Jumping around to face her, Leo was surprised to see she was still on the ground laughing.  
"Come on Karone, be serious" said Leo existing his fighting stance as he knew she wasn't going to continue. It took Karone a moment to calm herself down and stop laughing.  
"But Leo, why I are you taking this so seriously?" asked Karone, her playfulness leaving her as she sat up and looked up at him.  
"It's nothing" he said firmly, rubbing his nose before walking off to lean against a tree, thinking obviously. Karone tilted her head at him, trying to figure out why he was so serious about his training. Over the last few days he had been training more and more, harder and harder. She knew something was bothering him, she just didn't know what.  
"Talk to me Leo" said Karone after getting up and walking over to him, putting her hand on his shoulder. Leo looked over at her, considering, before turning the rest of himself around to face her.  
"...It's... It's Mike" confessed Leo.  
"You're brother" said Karone, remembering what had happened to him on Mirinoi. She felt guilty for not having thought of him much since then.  
"I just feel..." Leo continued, but couldn't seem to find the words. "I just feel I'm not honouring him. I mean I nearly got killed a few weeks ago, and would have if you hadn't saved me. Then I nearly lost you to Astron-" Leo stopped talking when he nearly said the other name Karone went by.  
"You're trying your best Leo" said Karone putting the palm of her hand against his cheek.  
"But it's not good enough" said Leo pushing past her. "I have to get better. I won't let him down"  
"I know you won't Leo. But still, you have to be careful not to push yourself to much" warned Karone, wrapping her arms around one of his muscular one's.  
"It's a good thing I have you to tell me when I'm going overboard" said Leo looking at her with a thin smile, which Karone returned happily. She could feel herself leaning in closer towards his face and his face leaning towards her. They closed their eyes and opened their lips kissing, thinking they were alone.  
"I am I intruding?" asked Furio who emerged from behind a nearby tree. Instantly Leo and Karone pulled away from each other to face Furio.  
"What do you want?" demanded Leo as he and Karone took two steps away from each other and got ready for a fight.  
"Not much. Just your heads" said Furio pointing his sword at them.  
"Ye, good luck with that" said Karone jokingly, with a grin.  
"Let's see what you got then Rangers" said Furio. Leo and Karone then whipped out their individual sabers and charged at Furio. Leo swung from the right first, followed by Karone who swung from the left. Furio managed to block both the attacks. The two then twirled and swung together, their blades crossing over each other horizontally. Furio blocked, stopping the sabers from moving forwards. The three now stood in a triangle formation, the swords all meeting in the middle.  
"That all you got?" mocked Furio. Leo and Karone ignored his taunting and broke off, prehearing for another attack.  
This time Karone went first, flipping over Furio and attacking from behind. Furio managed not only to dodge the attack but also attack Leo at the same time. Leo luckily blocked and then countered, but Furio had already turned back to face Karone. He slashed at her forcing her back, she easily blocked every attack from him despite the fact she was losing ground. Leo saw his chance and went in for the attack. Aiming for Furio's back it was amazing at how he somehow saw the attack coming and blocked it. Not only did he block Leo's attack, but he also managed to swing his sword back round in time to block Karone's attack and then back again to stop Leo's second attack. Before Karone could then get in with a downward slash she got kicked away by Furio. He then turned all his attention on Leo and pushed him back against a tree, pressing down with his other hand on his sword so that Leo was trapped against the tree. Leo grunted as he tried to push off the strong Furio, but to no avail.  
Furio had him trapped but then suddenly looked up to the sky, as if someone was calling to him and backed off, letting Leo sink to the ground. Furio looked up for a moment and then turned back to Leo.  
"This isn't over Red Ranger" said Furio before vanishing.  
"What's his problem?" asked Karone, getting off the ground.  
"Wish I knew" answered Leo as he too got up.  
"We did well there, don't you think?" said Karone, a proud smile on her face.  
"Ye, we did" said Leo before he kissed her. With his sword in one hand and his other wrapped around Karone's waist the two walked onwards, towards the main dome.  
"It felt like we were in sync there, didn't it?"  
"I know what you mean. It's like since we started dating, we've only gotten stronger as a team" pointed out Leo.  
"So we're dating" said Karone looking to Leo with a devilish grin  
"Are we not?" asked Leo, disappointed.  
"Of course we are" said Karone reassuring him with a peck on the cheek.  
"Oh good" said Leo smiling with relief.  
"Does that mean I get to call you my boyfriend?" asked Karone, shyly.  
"No. But I get to call you my girlfriend" answered Leo looking at her with a cheeky smile. Karone smirked at him before giving him a light shove and running off ahead, with Leo chasing after her.

Back on the Scorpion Stinger, Furio was now kneeling before Scorpius and Trakeena.  
"Furio, have you managed to locate a weakness in the Astro Megazord?" asked Scorpius.  
"Yes, I believe that with a strong enough blow to the neck area of the Megazord it will be rendered useless and as we've seen the Galactabeasts are no threat" said Furio.  
"And how do you suppose you are going to deal that much damage to the Megazord?" asked Trakeena, hoping to trip Furio up.  
"I've called in weapons collector, who's more than capable of taking out the Astro Megazord, should it come to that. He's promised that he'll not only get rid of the Rangers' Quasar Sabers but also all of Terra Venture's weapons hold as well" said Furio proudly.  
"See that it's done" ordered Scorpius. "Once he's taken care of the Rangers and Terra Venture's weapons, then we'll strike" he ended with an evil laugh which Trakeena joining in on. Furio just bowed and existed, heading off to meet the weapons collector. Furio was more than confident that his associate could handle the Rangers, after all he had managed to acquire the Transdaggers. Giving him a more than famous reputation, the Transdaggers were said to be so powerful that they would double the power of anyone that held them.  
Rubbing his hands together, Furio knew it wouldn't be long until he would be done with the Ranger.

It was the start of another day on Terra Venture and Kendrix was once again stuck with a moody Kia.  
After the third night in a row of Leo and Karone keeping him up with their giggling he was getting sick of it, and making Kendrix well aware of it.  
"I mean for crying out loud, would it kill them to sleep in her room. I just want to be able to sleep at night after a long days work" moaned Kai as the lift ascended up towards to the command centre. Kendrix rolled her eyes as Kai continued, moaning about how it was his apartment and that Leo was lucky he didn't kick him out considering he wasn't meant to be on Terra Venture. Of course Kai didn't know that last week Leo and Maya had both gone and owned up to "stowing away" on Terra Venture. With not much option the Commander had given them passes and ordered them to work, which they happily agreed to. Maya had been put in the gardens but Kendrix hadn't heard from Leo about his job position. All he knew was that Karone had signed up to do the same job.  
As Kai continued on his rant, Kendrix couldn't help but look at him dream fully. Hopping one day she'd have with him what Leo and Karone had now. She knew he had feeling for her, and she for him. But she wanted him to make the first move, she just wished he'd hurry up with it.  
Convenient enough as Kai finished his rant, the lift doors opened and the two stepped into Command. Turning left, the two walked into a circular room with control consol around the room and one hexagon shaped consol in the centre of the room. As they walked through the room, Kai and Kendrix both greeted nearly everyone they passed with a friendly smile and nod. Upon finishing their morning greetings they walked into the next room which had a similar set up to the last, except one of the walls had a window with two seats in front of it looking out into space. In the seats sat two works who were surrounded by controls on either side of them, they controlled the ships flight pattern. In the centre of the room stood the Commander, who instantly spotted Kai and Kendrix and went to greet them.  
"Morning Kai" said the Commander as he shook Kai's hand.  
"Morning Kendrix" he continued, now shaking Kendrix's hand.  
"Morning sir" said the two simultaneously.  
"Come with me" the Commander ordered in a calm tone as he walked with the two Rangers behind him. "We've got some new recruits. I'd like you to train them" said the Commander.  
"Of course sir" said Kai with a humble nod.  
"Good to hear your enthusiasm Kai" said the Commander with a respectful nod, which Kai smiled at.  
"Where are the recruits sir?" asked Kendrix.  
"They're right over there" said the Commander indication with his hand to a man and woman standing by one of the consoles, talking. The man was slightly taller than the woman with black hair, while the woman had long blonde hair with a purple hair band.  
"Karone!" said a surprised Kendrix after she recognised her friend. Karone turned around and gave Kendrix a wave, as did the boy beside her.  
"Leo!" said Kai in shock, his jaws nearly hitting the floor when he saw his friends.  
"Good, you're all already acquainted. I'll leave you to get on with your training then" and then with that the Commander left, handing Kai a data pad with Leo and Karone's tests on them. As Kai flicked through the pages looking at the couple's scores, surprised how great they had done.  
"It's... it's..." said Kai, unable to speak.  
"I think what Kai is trying to say is that we're happy to be working with you" said Kendrix smiling. "Right Kai" but Kai didn't say anything, only stare at the data pad with an open mouth.  
"Kai" said Leo to which Kai looked at him and then Leo put his hand under Kai's chin and closed his jaw. The two girls and Leo laughed at this, while Kai just frowned.  
"Right, I'll take Karone, and Kai you take Leo" said Kendrix taking Karone by the arm and leading her away. The two looked back at the two men who looked like they were about to fight and smiled at one another.  
From that point on the day went fast for Karone and Kendrix. Karone easily completed every task Kendrix assigned her, whether it was checking the scanners for nearby planets, checking to see if the hybrid planets were ready to survive on their own, or just keeping Leo from pushing Kai too far.  
However since Kendrix had an important meeting to attended, she had asked Karone to go with Kai and Leo down to the armoury and help store all the weapons. Karone was of course happy to do so.

It only took them about an hour or so, to collect all the weapons from the soldiers and hang them up. Kai had supervised them for the first fifteen munities, but then left claiming he had more important duties to attend. So he had left Leo and Karone to lock up the weapons dome once they were done, which they were now ready to do.  
Existing the large white dome, with its hexagon panels, Karone noted that it was much bigger on the inside than it seemed from the outside. For some reason they thought the white dome in the middle of city dome was a good, an anonymous place to put the weapons storage. Mind you, no one had ever been broken into it and you could only gain access with the key card and code.  
Leo was closing the door when Karone jabbed him in his sides with both her hands, making him jump. Laughing as Leo spun around, he was smiling like a kid and trying to buzz her back. Karone managed to keep ahead of him for a bit, but once Leo cornered her against the weapons dome she was at his mercy. Laughing as he grabbed her and tickled her, Karone tried to speak but couldn't over her laughter. Her sides quickly started to ache as she used what little strength she could summon to try and pry herself free from Leo. After a few seconds Leo let go and Karone dropped to the ground, clutching her sides as she laughed uncontrollably.  
"You-you-you are-a-a-a-cruel-man" Karone managed to get out in between her laughs as she slowly gained control of herself again.  
"Sorry, but it was pretty funny" said Leo laughing as he helped her up.  
"Well, I'll just have to get you back" decided Karone, ready to get her own back as she narrowed her eyes at her target.  
"You'll have to catch me first" said Leo spiriting off before he even finished his sentence. Karone was confident that she should catch him and decided to give him a head start, of about a second. She was quick to chase after him, both not behaving how they should in their command uniforms. Neither caring at all and continued with their little childish game.  
They had been playing cat and mouse for about twenty minutes or so, when Karone lost Leo in one of the main dome's parks. She peered behind trees and looked under bushes and benches but still no sign of him. Just when she was about to give up she was jumped from behind with hug, laughing as she was thrown from side to side she knew instantly it was Leo. She fought feebly, banning on Leo's tight arms with her own. After a moment Leo lost his footing and fell to the ground, his grip then loosened on Karone and she managed to roll off him.  
A sudden beep from their morphers, indicating a call, stopped their play time. The two stopped laughing and dusted off as they answered their morphers.  
"Leo here" he answered holding down on his morpher with Karone leaning in to listen.  
"An alarm has just been triggered at the weapons dome!" said Kai in a panic, "Get there now!" he ordered. It was then Leo looked to Karone, guilt all over. She knew to what had happened. They hadn't locked the weapons dome.  
"We're on our way!" shouted Leo back in a panic as he and Karone spirited back towards the weapons dome. Fuelled with adrenaline, their previous game didn't seem to have tired them at all, within minutes they were back at the weapons dome. Running down the path to the small white dome, Karone could see that Kai had already arrived and entered the dome by the open door and parked car.  
As the two burst into the now bare room, they found Kai lying on the ground, a scorch mark on his left shoulder. "Kai! Are you ok?" asked Leo bending down to help him up. Kai pushed Leo away and when Karone tried to help he did the same. Getting up, Karone could tell from Kai's movements that he was angry. That and his baring teeth and near popping eyes were also indicators.  
"How could you be so STUPID as to leave the door unlocked!" shouted Kai enraged, throwing his arms up in the air.  
"It was an accident" said Leo innocently, his voice quiet and timid, unlike his usual self.  
"An ACCIDENT! Are you kidding me?!"  
"It was my fault" said Karone stepping up, trying to take the heat of Leo. "He was locking up, when I pulled him away to play"  
"This isn't a game!" shouted Kai, his anger passing from Leo to Karone with the turn of his body.  
"We're sorry" said Karone.  
"Sorry isn't going to bring back all these missing weapons! Why can't you two just grow up! All you do all day is laugh and play, you never take anything seriously-"  
"HEY!" shouted Karone, her own anger flaring out of Kai's remarks about her. "We take our duties as Rangers, VERY seriously" argued Karone stepping closer towards Kai, while Leo stood behind her, not feeling the same anger Karone was. He was feeling something else.  
"You don't know what it means to take something serious! You've caused nothing but problems since you got here and you take zero responsibility. Two weeks ago you nearly killed us all!" that hit Karone hard. She was speechless, in front of the very anger Kai who was red with rage.  
"Kai!" came Kendrix's voice from the door. Stern and disapproving, with a glare to back it up, not that Karone was looking. She was now looking at the ground, ashamed of herself. As if it had only just sunk in what she could have done a few weeks ago.  
Kai looked to the just as angry Kendrix and his own anger seemed to fade, as he realised what had just been said. He turned back to Karone, hoping to quickly fix his mistake and heal her fresh wounds.  
"Karone, I'm-I'm-" started Kai with a stutter but Karone didn't let him finish.  
"No-no... You're- You're... right" said Karone turning away and walking off towards an empty wall. It was as if a blindfold had just been lifted from her eyes. She had thought that everything had been ok between her and her friends but now she could see they certainly weren't. But how could she blame them? She had almost killed them and if it hadn't been for Leo who knows what else she might have done.  
"Karone I'm-" said Kai coming over to her to apologize. But the second he touched her Karone jumped away, fear in her eyes as her lower lip shook.  
"Sorry... Just-just stay back... please" said Karone, holding her fragile self in her arms, feeling like she might shatter at any moment.  
"Karone it's fine, I'm sorry. I know you wouldn't ever-" Kai said trying to calm her down.  
"But I could have... I could have killed you. I could have killed all of you" Karone said, now shaking.  
"Kai, go and get the others" ordered Kendrix, taking command since Leo was still disappointed in himself and Kai was trying to apologize to the now shocked Karone. Kai didn't argue and ran back out the front door to get Damon and Maya.  
"Karone" said Kendrix taking a firm grip on her friend's shoulders so she didn't try and pull away. "Karone I need you to come with me and help chase the monster" said Kendrix in a calm and soothing tone that seemed to break through to Karone's common sense. Karone just nodded in agreement to which Kendrix responded with the same before moving on to Leo. "Leo come on" but Leo didn't move. "Leo if you want to put things right then come on. Let's go and get those weapons back" said Kendrix.  
"You're right, let's go" said Leo taking the led with Kendrix and Karone behind him as the three ran out the back and after the monster.

It didn't take them long to track the monster to the docks where it stood out clear as light in the darkest night. The alien was a yellow skinned one with narrow eyes and a head shaped in a point with two curved horns coming out his shoulders, connecting to his head, and then going down his back. He wore a long black coat and had two human like hands with long sword like hooks coming out his wrists.  
"Give us back those weapons!" demanded Leo getting the Aliens attention.  
"You mean my weapons" snapped the alien, "These are now my property"  
"We'll see about that. Go! Galactic!" he announced with Kendrix, while Karone said "Phoenix Power" and in a flash of red, pink and purple the three transformed.  
"Oh, Power Rangers. I've been looking forward to adding you're sabers to my collection" said the alien, greedily as he tapped his fingers together. Eyeing their sabers as they pulled them out.  
"You want them, come and get them?" said Leo charging head first at the alien.  
"Leo wait" said Kendrix trying to stop him, but he'd already gone. He was slashing away at the alien with his saber and the alien was louring him back, away from the two girls. "We've got to help him" said Kendrix looking to Karone.  
"Right" said Karone with a nod of agreement. The two ran forwards towards their friend but didn't get close as a pack of Sting Wingers jumped out in front of them, blocking their path. The two girls however didn't stop in their charge and came at the Sting Wingers swinging. Karone stuck close to Kendirx as they made their way through the Sting Wingers, two at a time.  
One jumped up while Karone was holding off another, with its stinger ready to slice through her. She would have been hit if not for Kendrix who sliced up through the air taking out the Sting Winger with ease. She then landed back down and allowed Karone to roll over her while she then took on the Sting Winger that Karone had been blocking against. Karone then had an ease time, slashing horizontally with her saber and taking out two Sting Wingers. She then blocked one Sting Winger trying hit Kendrix from her left and then kicked away on from her right that was trying to get her. Kendrix then appeared from the air, after flipping over Karone, and then took at the Sting Winger Karone was blocking. The two then went back to back and spun around in unison so that their sabers were always pointing opposite one another. This easily took out a number of Sting Wingers and a couple others that ran at them trying to get the jump on them. Once finished Kendrix ducked and Karone stood up with three phoenix feathers in her left hand. "Phoenix Feathers!" she announced, throwing the feathers at the remaining Sting Wingers and destroying them.  
"Nice one" said Kendrix as she high fived Karone, who was smiling behind her visor.  
"Thanks" said Karone gratefully, before Leo came rolling across the ground towards them.  
"You ok?" asked Kendrix as the two helped him off the ground.  
"It's nothing" said Leo shaking it off as the other three Rangers arrived.  
"Sorry we're late" said Damon as he joined Kendrix's side.  
"It's no problem" said Karone, happy for her friends support.  
"Alright let's finish this guy" said Leo.  
"Bring it" said the alien, confident. Karone moved first jumping high in the air and landing not far in front of the yellow alien, she had pulled out three more purple feathers while in the air.  
"Phoenix Feathers!" announced Karone as she went to throw her feathers, but somehow the alien grabbed her hand before she could, his fingers then wrapping around her personal weapons  
"Nice feathers" commented the alien, admiring the small weapons in his and Karone's. "I'll trade you. Some off those for some of mine" with that the alien pointed his free hand at Karone's chest and fired out three laser blasts, sending her flying back towards her friends. Not only did the alien now have the three Phoenix feathers, but also Karone's Phoenix saber which she dropped. "Oh goodie" said the alien pocketing the feathers and then picking up the saber to marvel at it.  
"Give that back!" demanded Karone as he friends helped her up.  
"I don't think so" said the alien pulling open his jacket to reveal an arsenal of weapons in his coat. He put the saber in and pondered for a moment. "You know what? I think it looks lonely. How about I take some more of those sabers" suggested the alien, and then a tentacle shot out from his sleeve and managed to grab four out of the five remain Quasar Sabers. Leo had managed to duck under the tentacle with Karone but the others hadn't been as lucky and had lost their sabers.  
"Give those back!" shouted Maya.  
"Why would I do that?" said the alien, acting confused. "But I think I'll take one more for good measure" and with that the tentacle shot out again, this time grabbing Leo's saber. Leo held on but was getting pulled towards the alien. "Let go" said the alien as he struggled to pry the weapon from the Red Ranger.  
"Never" said Leo stubbornly.  
"I've not got time for this" said the alien, fed up with the tug of war. With one heave he pulled Leo into his jacket were he vanished alone with all their weapons. "See ya" said the alien with a smug smile and a wave, before he threw down a smock pellet.  
"Stop" shouted Kai as he and the other Rangers ran forwards and tried to catch him, but he was gone before the smock cleared.  
"Leo..." said Karone defeated as she demorphered, tears welling up in her eyes. She'd lost him.

The five remaining Rangers had retreated back to the guy's apartment to recover and hopefully find Leo. Damon was on his laptop typing away trying to track Leo's morpher's signal, with Karone and Maya looking over his shoulder. As for Kai he had taken up a sulking position on his bed, clutching a pillow.  
"It's my fault" said Kai sniffing, but not actually crying. "I gave him to hard a time about losing the weapons" he admitted as Kendrix handed him a tissue.  
"You're right about that" muttered Karone under her breath, but no one heard her.  
"Kai, it's not your fault" said Kendrix reassuring him "You know what Leo's like. He would never give up without a fight, especially when it comes to that Quasar Saber"  
"You think?" asked Kai hopefully.  
"I found him!" said Damon suddenly as a red flashing dot appeared on the his computer screen.  
"Where is he?" asked Karone leaning in.  
"The industrial zone" answered Damon. Karone was first to run off with Maya and Damon close behind her. Once Kai hopped out of bed, he and Kendrix followed from the back. He just hoped Leo was ok and that nothing bad had happened to him.

In the Industrial zone, several Sting Wingers had gathered along with Furio. They were moving the piles of Terra Ventures weapons from where the yellow alien had dropped them and over to a smelting bath.  
"That's it, burn all these. I've got to make room for my new Quasar Sabers" said the alien happily as he rubbed his stolen sabers. The Sting Wingers did as told and began dropping the weapons in the fiery bath, where the weapons just melted away. Not to high over the large circular bath was a metal platform where Leo was being held. Still in his Red Ranger suit, but bound by steel chains and two Sting Wingers that had a tight grip on him.  
"Horn!" shouted Furio as he walked over to the yellow alien holding the Quasar Sabers.  
"Yes Furio. Look I have the Quasar Sabers and all of Terra Ventures weapons as promised" said Horn extending his arm and passing it over the pile of weapons.  
"Good. Now give me the Quasar Sabers" ordered Furio holding out his hand to take the weapons from Horn.  
"What?" said Horn in shock, taking a step back. "But these are mine"  
"Scorpius wants them destroyed, along with those Transdaggers"  
"But that wasn't part of our deal!" shouted Horn in annoyance.  
"We have no deal" said Furio, fed up with the discussion, he stepped forwards and grabbed hold of the Quasar Sabers. The two entered a tug of war which ended with Horn pulling out one of the Quasar Sabers and swiping with it. Furio easily dodged the sloppy attack but had to lose his grip on the sabers to avoid it.  
"You're not taking my sabers!" shouted Horn in defiance as he bag throwing the saber around hitting anything standing near him. He hit several Sting Wingers before he realised that his actions weren't his own. "I-I-I can't control it" Furio grunted, he no longer had need for Horn so he might as well destroy him now. He shot out two blasts of energy but the Quasar Saber deflected the attack and instead the blasts hit Leo's chains and the Sting Wingers holding him.  
"Oh no" said Horn as the chains that once held Leo fell to the floor.  
"Oh yes" said Leo before jumping down and easily removing his Quasar Saber from Horn. Knocking back two Sting Wingers with the saber, Leo then grabbed hold of the remaining Quasar Sabers that Horn had and kicked him away from them. "Thanks for holding onto them" said Leo smugly before running off.  
"Get after him!" ordered Furio and the Sting Wingers chased off after him, along with Horn who had gone off to cut Leo off from his escape. He wasn't going to give up his priceless weapons without a fight.  
It wasn't hard for Leo to lose the pursuing Sting Wingers, all he had to do was duck into a gap between two thick pipes and wait for the Sting Wingers to run past. He had now gotten to the exit of the Industrial zone and was nearly home free when Horn jumped out in front of him.  
"Give me back those sabers Red Ranger" demanded Horn.  
"Never" answered Leo, getting ready to run the other way. But he didn't get the chance, before he could look away Horn shot out several blasts that hit Leo and forced him to drop to the ground. Not only that, but he lost his grip on the Quasar Sabers which went flying through the air and landed right at Horn's feet.  
"Why thank you Red Ranger" said Horn picking up the sabers, giggling as he hopped from one foot to the other.  
"Give those back" said Leo getting back up.  
"I don't think so" said Horn hopping away like a child who'd just been given chocolate. Suddenly Horn was shot down by three purple feathers and the sabers were back in the air. But this time when they came down Kai caught them in both his hands.  
"Nice catch Kai" said Damon patting him on the shoulder.  
"It was nothing, Karone's sneak attack was what got them back" said Kai looking over to Karone, all in their Rangers suits.  
"Thanks" said Karone with a grateful nod. Then her attention turned to Leo. "Leo! Are you ok?" asked Karone as she and the others joined him.  
"I am now that your here, and that we got the sabers back" answered Leo. He would have given Karone a kiss but the helmets prevented it, but she knew what he was feeling because she was feeling the same way.  
"I'm getting sick of you Rangers" said Horn getting up. "You know what, I don't think those sabers are worth it. At least I still have... have... Where are they?" asked Horn who was searching through his jacket for the Transdaggers.  
"You mean these" said Maya holding out the yellow Transdagger for the alien and others to see.  
"What! How did you get those?" asked Horn in shock that his weapons had been stolen right out from under him.  
"Swiped them from you after Karone hit you" answered Maya as the other Rangers took four remaining Transdaggers.  
"Great work Maya" said Karone giving her friends a nod and pat on the back while the others thanked Maya for their new weapons.  
"You stole them" said Horn accusingly.  
"Maybe, but you stole them first" said Kendrix.  
"We're just evening out your Karma" said Damon. Horn just groaned in annoyance as the Sting Wingers regrouped behind him and Furio appeared at his side.  
"How could you let them get the Transdaggers you fool!" snapped Furio.  
"I'll get them back and destroy the Rangers" said Horn.  
"Don't bother, Sting Wingers attack!" ordered Furio before turning back to Horn while the Rangers and Sting Wingers fought. "I'm going back to the ship, when you fight that Astro Megazord, you know what to do" and with that Furio was gone, leaving Horn to fend for himself.  
The Rangers easily took care of the Sting Wingers, thanks to their new Transdaggers which transformed into weapons. For Leo it was a simple dagger, Kai a claw, Damon a blaster, Maya two daggers and Kendrix a bow. Karone only had to take care of two Sting Wingers that came at her, which she believed were actually trying to escape from the other Rangers.  
"Whoa! These new Transdaggers are great" said Damon looking at his blaster once he had finished off the last of the Sting Wingers.  
"I know" said Kai in agreement. Now their attention was on Horn, ready to finish the stealing alien once and for all.  
"It's over, give up now while you still have a chance" said Leo, giving Horn a chance to surrender.  
"Never. I've still got one trick up my sleeve" said Horn pulling out a bottle of green liquid that the Rangers had all seen before. Quickly gulping it down Horn then proceeded to grown up to the height of the buildings.  
"I've got this" said Karone as she summoned the Astro shuttle and Mega ship with her morpher. She jumped up into the shuttle and began the transformation into the Astron Megazord. "Astro Megazord Ready" said Karone from the pilot's chair as she held the controls, ready to fight Horn.  
"Bring it on tin can" said Horn as he charged at the Megazord. Karone tried to dodge but Horn was too quick and easily tackled the Megazord. But Karone managed to hold her ground and push Horn off. She then went at him with a right punch, slow and heavy, Horn managed to duck under the attack and then punch the Megazord in the throat which caused sparks to fly from the control room.  
"What the?" said Karone confused as the controls to the Megazord began to malfunction and delay in their response. Horn was now just pounding on the Megazord and Karone could do nothing to stop him. Sparks were shooting out of the control panels and she was being throwing from side to side. If this kept up the Megazord would be destroyed in a few minutes, particularly with Horn beating up the neck of the Astro Megazord, the point that connected the shuttle to the Mega ship. "Guys I could use some help" said Karone into her morpher, communicating with her friends.  
"You got it" said Leo. It didn't take long for the Galactabeasts to reveal themselves. Leo's Lion was the first to attack knocking Horn away from the Megazord and forming a protective line between Horn and Karone with the other Galactabeasts. "You ok?" shouted Leo from atop his lion.  
"I'm alright, but the Megazord is fried. You and the others will have to take care of him on your own" said Karone as she tried to fix the Megazord from the cockpit.  
"We'll take care of this. Right guys" said Leo turning to the other Rangers.  
"Right" they all shouted in agreement.  
"Let's use the Transdaggers to power up" shouted Leo, holding up his Red Transdagger to the sky. The others copied Leo and then light shot down from the sky and hit the Transdaggers, the Rangers then jumped into their individual zords. Inside each of them had a turning table of their colour.  
"Whoa" said Leo looking around at the interior.  
"This is incredible" said an overjoyed Maya.  
"Unbelievable" said Kendrix.  
"Cool" added Damon.  
"Let do it" said Kai as he and the others put their Transdaggers in the turning table and the Galactabeasts transformed from their beast form into their metal form.  
"Let's put them together" commanded Leo and the others all agreed. The metal zords then transformed and combined. The red lion became the chest and head of the Megazord and the blue gorilla the legs. The green condor became the waist and sword on back, while the yellow fox and pink wild cat became the arms. Together they formed the Galaxy Megazord.  
"Galaxy Megazord ready" said Leo from his control room in unison with the others.  
"What's this? Furio didn't tell me about another Megazord" said a confused and scared Horn.  
"Let's finish this. Condor cannon" announced Leo and the Megazord removed the Condor from its back and aimed it's beck at the alien. It's beck opened and a beam shot out destroying Horn in an instant.  
"Great job guys!" shouted Karone jumping inside her Megazord at the sight of her friends defeating the evil alien. The Galaxy Megazord then processed to help the Astro Megazord up and the two left Terra Venture.

"I'm sorry Scorpius" said Furio kneeling before his master as he usually did after a day with the Power Rangers. He was currently apologizing for the actions of Horn. "I didn't believe Horn would be so stupid as to try and hold onto the Quasar Sabers and lose the Transdaggers" said Furio looking shamefully at the ground.  
"I don't blame you Furio" said Scorpius, more forgiving than usual. "It's not your fault that the fool failed in his mission. I believe that if that Galaxy Megazord hadn't shown up, then the Astro Megazord would have been destroyed. But now they can repair and hide it somewhere else. I'm only sorry that the information you brought us was wasted" said Scorpius with regret and disappointment.  
"Thank you Scorpius, I will make sure to defeat the Rangers in our next encounter" promised Furio raising.  
"Good, you may leave" said Scorpius allowing him to leave. Once Furio was gone he sighed with disappointment. Trakeena then emerged in her normal fashion, from the shadows and came to her father's side.  
"What is it my father?" asked Trakeena, sounding concerned.  
"It's these-these Rangers. They keep getting in the way. We need away to destroy them. But how?" said Scorpius thinking, but nothing came to him. It came to Trakeena though.  
"What about the Lights of Orion" suggested Trakeena with sinister smile.  
"The lights?" said Scorpius, getting interested.  
"You know? The lights"  
"Yes I know. But no one knows where to find them" pointed out Scorpius.  
"I think they're on Terra Venture. Let me go down and I'll find them" promised Trakeena with an evil smile and a gleam of hope in her eyes. Hope that her father would finally let her in on the action.  
"Very well" said Scorpius after a long moment of consideration. Trakeena then jumped in the air and screamed like a girl meeting her favourite teenage boy band.  
"Thank you-Thank you-Thank you" said Trankeena happily as she jumped around the room.  
"Just be careful" said the concerned Scorpius.  
"Of course father" said Trakeena once she calmed down and walked out ready to head down to the surface to find her prise. Little did she know that Furio was following her down, to keep an eye on her.

Back on Terra Venture Leo and Karone were in the command centre, working away when the Commander walked in.  
"Leo, Karone. I hear from Kai and Kendrix that you to are coming along nicely" said the Commander looking at the two with pride. Karone looked to Leo with a smile and tilted head, both knowing and agree on what they were about to do.  
"Thank you sir" started Leo "But we don't think this job is right for us" Karone nodded in agreement. "We're not good at knowing all the rules and following them. We like to goof off"  
"We're not the kind of people that should be working in the command centre" added Karone.  
"I see. Well I respect your honesty, but what will you do?" asked the Commander, curious.  
"We were thinking of working in the Nursery or playgroup" said Karone with a smile, thinking of the kid in her.  
"I'll see what I can do, but that sound reasonable" said Commander with a smile.  
"Thank you sir" said Leo and Karone with a smile and salute before walking out. They were about to enter the lift, which would take them down to the main dome, when Kai came running down the corridor.  
"Wait, Leo!" shouted Kai catching up to him. "I...I... I wanted to apologize for what I said the other day" said Kai looking shamefully at the ground. Leo just smiled and put his hand on his friends shoulder.  
"It's fine Kai. And I appreciate how hard it was to train me" said Leo.  
"And sorry Karone for what I said in the weapons dome. I don't believe for a second-"  
"It's fine Kai" said Karone sincerely, she knew he had said it out of anger and had not meant it. He, like the rest of her friends, saw her as Karone and not Astronema. Karone could see the two men wanted to talk more, man to man, and that it would be easier without her standing watching.  
"I'm going to go down to the main dome. I catch you two later" said Karone pressing the button inside the lift to go down. She waved goodbye to her friends as the doors closed and it descended to the city.  
All in all it hadn't been a bad day. True they had lost their weapons for period of time, but once they got them back it had been easy to defeat the alien. After figuring out that the problem with the Astro Megazord, they hide the ships in a new hanger, so that they could come and go with ease. Damon was currently hard at work fixing the Mega ship, and Karone was on her way to help him. But what made Karone most happy was the fact that she had now gone over two weeks without any sign of Astronema. She hadn't tried to take over, hadn't been talking to her. If she didn't know better she would say that Astronema had vanished altogether. Unfortunately she was probably regrouping and readying to try and take over again, but that also allowed Karone to calm her mind and stay in control. Things were begging to improve for Karone, who was now leaning against the lift wall with her eyes closed and a pleasant smile on her face.  
"Soon..." she whispered for no reason, feeling that it wouldn't be long until everything was back to normal.


	9. The Lights of Orion

**Chapter 9: The Lights of Orion**

Inside the mountains dome, Trakeena had had no luck on finding the Lights of Orion so far. She had been to the top of the highest mountain and explored some of the darkest caves, but nothing even close to the lights had been seen. Currently Trakeena was making her way over to the next mountain, across a dusty waste land where barley anything lived. A few weeds here and there and the occasional tree but other than that life was scarce.  
"Having fun?" came the familiar voice of Furio, who Trakeena spotted out the corner of her eye. He was leaning against a tree, sheltered by the shade, grinning at Trakeena as she passed by. Trakeena ignored him and kept walking, trying not to show how tried she was from all the hiking she had been doing. "Trakeena" said Furio, getting her attention after she'd walked a little further forward.  
"What Furio" snapped Trakeena, looking back over her shoulder at the red armoured alien.  
"I'm here to help, so kindly let me" said Furio with a small bow of the head, showing his respect.  
"I can handle it myself" responded Trakeena before continuing on her way. Not looking back she could sense that Furio had vanished, probably not too far away. At an obvious guess, Trakeena figured that Furio had been sent to watch over her. Clearly her father still didn't trust her, Trakeena scowled to herself at the thought and continued on over the hill.  
Heading down hill, it was all tall weeds that reached up to Trakeena's hip. She was surprised at the sudden burst of life this area, there were even two trees. One nearby and the other beside a rock face cliff. As she walked down the hill something caught her eye, a red piece of metal in the face of the cliff. Narrowing her eyes and approaching the metal, Trakeena could see that it was some sort of metal door.  
"Yes-yes-yes" said Trakeena victoriously as she jumped around smiling. She'd found the lights, she'd found the Lights of Orion. Her father would be ever so pleased. Stepping back she aimed her buggy staff at the door and shot out a green energy bolt. It was a clear hit but the door still stood. "What?!" shouted Trakeena in annoyance as she walked over and examined the door, not even a scorch mark. Rubbing her hands across the door she couldn't feel any weak point. Pounding on the door trying to make it open, she stopped when the sound of Furio's laughter filled her ears. Looking back she could see Furio standing on the hill, laughing at her. She narrowed her eyes and turned to face him.  
"You're meant to help me. So help!" demanded Trakeena pointing to the metal door. Furio only snorted and walked over before unleashing a red energy blast from his sword, once again there was no damage to the door. "Looks like you're not any stronger than me" mocked Trakeena with a thin smile.  
"It's obviously protected by a force field of some sort" muttered Furio looking away shamefully.  
"So how do we open it then?" asked Trakeena.  
"Obviously we need some worthy to gain us access to the cave" answered Furio.  
"So the Lights are in there" said Trakeena, eagerly as her smile returned. "It's just a question of how to get inside" Trakeena finished, stroking the red door with her hand. Then it came to her, the perfect idea. "The Rangers, surely they'd be worth" said Trakeena turning to Furio.  
"Maybe. But how would you get them to open the cave willingly?" asked Furio, not having as much faith in Trakeena's idea. After all the Rangers weren't stupid, they wouldn't open the cave for them.  
"I've got a friend who might be able to help" responded Trakeena grinning. Furio snorted before replying.  
"Do what you want, I'll have nothing to do with this" said Furio turning to leave.  
"But you will" said Trakeena slyly. "After all, my father told you to look after me. And if the Rangers should harm me... then I don't think that would end well for you" said Trakeena grinning at Furio who growled as he turned around.  
"Fine..." muttered Furio as he bowed his head to Trakeena, making her smile. It was nice to have complete control over some one.  
"That's more like it" said Trakeena walking away from the door, Furio right behind her like an obedient dog.

Leo and Karone were having a great first day at the nursery; their co-workers had greeted them with open arms. They had been low on staff and really appreciated the help. Leo and Karone mostly worked with the children, playing games and keeping them entertained as well as teaching them new things. The other staff members tended to work in the offices and deal with other things. As for the children, they wormed up to Leo and Karone almost instantly. Three of them managed to tackle Leo at the door causing the room to erupt in laugher.  
However, the day was sort and coming to a close. Parents had started arriving to pick up their children and greet Leo and Karone as well as thank them for looking after their children. Both Leo and Karone were very thankful that the parents like them; it would make their jobs easier.  
Waving goodbye to the last of the kids and their parents as they went home, Leo and Karone were free to go and began wondering back through the city. It was only just after midday; one of the benefits of working in nursery was that the job had sort hours. So for the rest of the day Leo and Karone were free to do couples' stuff, or Ranger duties should they arise.  
"That went well" said Karone as she and Leo walked along the street, side by side, with her hands behind her back, looking up at the sky. Karone couldn't help but smile at how well things were going for her recently.  
"Mmmm" murmured Leo in agreement as he walked on, looking ahead. "It was fun, just getting to play with the kids" said Leo smiling at her.  
"That's because you are a kid silly" said Karone with a smile and little laugh as she hugged his arm.  
"So are you" said Leo defensively.  
"I didn't say it was a bad thing" said Karone leaning her head on Leo's shoulder. "I actually think it's kind of cute"  
"Would have felt better if you said 'hot'" said Leo. Karone just laughed as she hugged him and continued walking. It obvious to her that something was bothering Leo, though it was unlikely he'd admit it.  
"You alright?" asked Karone looking at Leo with worry.  
"Ye... just something... something doesn't feel right" said Leo looking around, as if trying to spot what was wrong. There was shiver down his spin, a pre warning that something was wrong. But what could be wrong on such a good day, he wondered as he looked around.  
It was then Karone spotted Maya and Damon across the street, sitting on a beach have lunch. Both were eating sandwiches and enjoying a break from their jobs, neither had noticed Leo or Karone yet. Karone walked over with Leo trailing behind her.  
"HEY!" shouted Karone, to which her friends looked up and waved at her. She jogged across the empty road to her friends to greet them properly, unaware that Leo was no longer following her. Leo had spotted something down the street, something disturbing. It was Mike or at least it looked like Mike. Leo tilted his head looking ahead, but the man Leo believed to be Mike was walking away.  
"Mike" whispered Leo, unsure of what he was seeing. The man had now vanished behind a corner and Leo was running down the street after him. He reached the corner which Mike had gone behind but somehow the man had gotten even further down the street, at walking pace. He looked back and spotted Leo, giving him a gentle wave before vanishing into the underground. "Mike!" shouted Leo calling after him as he ran towards the underground and raced down the stairs. He followed the crowd, no further sign of his brother. He jumped on the first train he saw and began searching through the carriages for Mike.  
It didn't take long for the train to reach its destination, the mountain dome. No one got off though, most looked as if they were heading to the forest dome or beach dome for a day out. Looking out the window Leo then spotted Mike walking up a hill. Acting quickly Leo pushed his way through the crowd and jumped off just before the doors could close. Picking himself up of the ground he'd lost sight of Mike again and quickly made his way up the hill as the train vanished back into the underground.  
But he was gone and there was no one else in sight. Cursing under his breath he looked around for any trace or sign of which direction Mike had gone off in. But there was nothing. It was only then he realised that he had ended up in the middle of the mountain dome. Leo was now begging to feel like he'd just been gone on a wild goose chase. Rubbing his brow, he wasn't sure if what he had seen was real or just an illusion.  
He was about to turn back and head back to the train station when suddenly he was surrounded by several Sting Wingers. Quickly he broke into a fighting stance, but the Sting Wingers didn't come at him. They only seemed to be trapping him, preventing him from escaping. Not liking the idea of being surrounded by Sting Wingers, Leo acted with an attack. He lunched forwards towards a Sting Winger, ready to punch it but was grabbed from behind by two Sting Wingers that restrained him. Leo was now truly trapped, no matter how much he tried he couldn't break free from the two Sting Wingers.  
"Well, well" came a female voice to which Leo looked up at a women, covered in black bug like armour, approaching him. "I would have thought the Red Ranger would have put up more of a fight" said Trakeena with a snigger as she stopped in front of Leo.  
"Who are you?" asked Leo, looking the girl up from top to bottom.  
"I'm the princess Trakeena" she said proudly, grinning at Leo.  
"So what do you want with me?" asked Leo. Trakeena put her fingers on her chin and stroke, thinking about how to respond to her prisoner.  
"I want you out of my way" said Trakeena with a sinister smile.  
"There's something new" said Leo with a cheeky grin. Before Trakeena could then snap back with a reply, several feathers flew past her and exploded. Trakeena had managed to shield herself from the attack and ended up only skidded back along the ground, still standing her ground. Then out of the smock cloud came Karone, demorphed, swinging at Trakeena with her Phoenix Saber. Trakeena was just able to block the attack with her staff, Karone pressing down against Trakeena's staff, both baring their teeth at one another.  
"Remember me" said Karone in between her clenched jaw, glaring at Trakeena angrily.  
"Astronema" answered Trakeena her jaw tight with a smile.  
"I prefer Karone" she snapped before jumping back from Trakeena and regrouping with Leo as the Sting Wingers moved to protect Trakeena. "You ok?" asked Karone looking to Leo who was now at her side.  
"I'm fine" said Leo, in his fighting stance.  
"One minute you were there, then you vanished. Damon and Maya are still having lunch, but Damon showed me how to track your morpher. Good thing too by the look of things"  
"I had it under control" said Leo, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Karone just grinned at him and raised her eye brows, before returning to her gaze to Trakeena and the Sting Wingers.  
"Would you two like a minute" said Trakeena with a snigger. Leo and Karone didn't respond and nodded to each other before charging at the Sting Wingers. Karone swung forward with the sword slashing one of the Sting Wingers across the chest before blocking against another with her saber. She then twirled around and sliced the Sting Winger before ducking under two Sting Wingers that jumped over her. She in turn blocked both the attacks from the two and then spun down and cut at their ankles, sending them to the ground.  
Meanwhile Leo was fighting his own group of Sting Wingers. He ducked under the first attacking Sting Winger and then jumped over the next. He flipped through the air and landed before punching and kicking two Sting Wingers at his side. He then twirled around and side stepped two punches from a Sting Winger before nailing the same bug with a throat punch. He then finished the alien off with a kick to the leg sending it to the ground. Before he had a chance to do anything else two Sting Wingers grabbed him and threw him across the ground, out of the crowd of aliens.  
"Leo!" shouted Karone in shock as she watched him lying on the ground. This distracted her and allowed a Sting Winger to kick her out of the crowd as well. Karone rolled along the ground towards Leo but she recovered and stopped before him, resting on one foot and bent down on her other knee. Holding up her saber to defend herself and Leo should the Sting Wingers come at them.  
"I think we should call for back up" suggested Karone, looking back over at Leo.  
"No, we can handle it" said Leo raising his morpher to indicate to her it was time to morph.  
"If you say so" said Karone trusting Leo and his decision.  
"Come on Rangers. I haven't got all day" said Trakeena, stamping the ground with her staff. Leo stood up with Karone and both got ready to morph.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced Leo.  
"Phoenix Power!" announced Karone.  
Seconds later the two had transformed into their Ranger suits and both had their sabers at the ready. The Sting Wingers charged and the two Rangers fought of the Sting Wingers. Easily blocking and slashing their way through them. It was surprisingly easy compared to when they had been fighting demorphed.  
Watching her Sting Wingers getting knocked down one after the other was not filling Trakeena with confidence. Then suddenly Furio appeared at her side.  
"Mutantrum is ready Trakeena" informed Furio to which Trakeena nodded.  
"Thank you Furio. You may leave now" she ordered and he vanished, not wanting anything more to do with Trakeena. Now her plan was almost complete, she just needed the Red Ranger to take the bait.  
Within moments the Rangers had taken care of the Sting Wingers, and Trakeena had retreated along with the rest of her Sting Wingers.  
"That was odd" said Karone looking around to make sure they were definitely gone before demorphing with Leo. "They just sort of, gave up" said Karone looking at where the Sting Wingers had been with a puzzled look on her face.  
"We're just too good" said Leo confidently as he gave Karone a pat on the back, before quickly pulling her into a hug. Karone laughed as she was twirled around and smiled at Leo before the two kissed. "Have I ever told you how good a kisser you are?" asked Leo as he pulled away, still holding Karone in his arms and looking into her shinnying eyes with a smile.  
"Nope. But I don't mind hearing it" said Karone grinning at him as she ran her finger along his shoulder and down his collar bone. Leo took her hand in his hand and kissed it, like a knight does to a princess. This made Karone giggle.  
Leo was about to make a move on Karone, but then caught sight off a silhouette on the hill ahead. The sun was above the man and cast a shadow over him, but Leo could have sworn it was his brother.  
"Mike..." said Leo narrowing his eyes as he watched the stranger vanish down the other side of the hill. Karone followed Leo's sight but couldn't see anything.  
"You alright Leo?" asked Karone, looking at him concerned.  
"I just saw Mike" said Leo walking past her towards the hill where the stranger had been standing.  
"Mike... but Leo, Mike's... dead" started Karone, choosing her words carefully.  
"I know what I saw" snapped Leo, turning back to Karone angrily.  
"I'm sorry Leo. It's just... remember what happened" Karone said slowly as not to upset Leo.  
"Karone. I saw him, why won't you believe me?" asked Leo defensively, getting angry.  
"Leo, please calm down" said Karone holding her hands up to show him she meant no harm.  
"It's Mike. I'm going after him" said Leo turning to leave.  
"Leo wait-"  
"If you're not going to help me then just go" snapped Leo before he ran off over the hill.  
"But Leo..." said Karone quietly, feeling hurt by the fact her boyfriend had just left her in the middle of the mountain dome alone.

Leo ran across the hills towards the figure on the horizon, who he believed to be Mike. He was running at full speed, Leo wasn't going to a allow himself to lose his brother again.  
"Mike!" Leo shouted as he ran, but the figure didn't look back and kept on going, somehow getting further ahead of Leo even at walking pace. Leo was starting to get tired and could feel his legs and lungs hurting from the fact that he had been running for so long. He was currently running up hill as Mike vanished down the other side. Reaching the top of the hill, he scanned for Mike but he was nowhere in sight.  
"Mike!" called out Leo, but there was nothing. He walked down the hill, slowly, allowing himself a chance to catch his breath. Taking in deep breaths of air as he walked, he spotted a red metal door in the side of the cliff face of the mountain next to the hill. Leo approached it, thinking perhaps Mike had gone in there. He stepped towards the door and put his hand against it. The sudden sound of rusty old gears turning for the first time in centuries made Leo jump. He stepped back as slowly the red metal doors separated and skidded across the ground as they vanished opening up a secret cave.  
Leo took a curious step forward and peered in, it was dark and blocked Leo's line of sight. He scanned across the edge of the darkness, but there was no sign of Mike.  
"Mike! Are you in there?!" shouted Leo into the cave, is voice echoing. Again there was nothing, but the sound of Leo's echoing voice, fading away. His determination to find his brother took over and he walked into the cave, hands at the ready encase he was attacked by something in the darkness.  
As he wondered through the cave, in pitch black. He was surprised that he hadn't bumped into a wall yet or even tripped over a rock. He continued on for a bit until he spotted a light, coming from up ahead. Walking fast, but carefully, Leo made his way towards the light where he found a box on rock like table. The box was made of silver and covered in glitter, causing it to sparkly in the light. Where the light was coming from Leo did not know. Leo looked around but still no sign of his brother, but he was sure that the box was the key to finding him. He picked it up in both hands and the light around him seemed to move with it. Walking back the way he came towards the exit, he found that the light was following him, allowing him to see much easier in the cave until he reached the daylight. As he left the cave the light from the box faded and disappeared, but it still sparkled in the daylight.  
Looking up from the attractive box he finally found Mike, standing ahead of him by a long tree.  
"Mike" said Leo, slightly in shock at the sight of his brother, despite the fact that he had been chasing him for the last couple of hours. It was just now, looking at Mike in front of him, that he knew it was is brother. He was actually a live.  
"Hey little brother" said Mike walking forwards, his arms held out for hug. Leo ran forwards dropping the box and running for his brother. Then suddenly his brother expression changed from happiness and joy, to anger and hatred. Before Leo knew what was happing, Mike had tripped him over and had him pinned against the ground, shoving his head against the hard ground.  
"Mike, what are you doing?" asked Leo with half his face in the ground.  
"Stupid little brother" snapped Mike as he pulled out a strange golden and blue stripped staff with a spiked ball at the tip. Before Leo could say any more he was hit on the head by with Mike's staff and he was out cold.

Elsewhere Karone was wondering through the forest dome, feeling horrible. She had gone there after Leo had run off, just to think. She was annoyed with herself for not going with Leo, he was upset and rather than being supportive she had been dismissive and questioned him. She felt like she was the worst girlfriend in the world at the moment, having let Leo down and abandoned him.  
She was starting to remember what had happened on Mirinoi, how Mike had fallen to his death, with Leo watching. How could he have survived that, how could anyone have survived that fall and the ground then crashing them?  
But that wasn't all that she was remembering, she was also remembering the old man that she had watched turn to stone. She could see it happening right in front of her. The old man reaching out for help, and Karone standing there, watching him, refusing to help him. Karone could feel her anger growing in her. Why hadn't she done something, she could have saved that man.  
Clenching her fist she began to frown as she felt her anger flaring up. Suddenly an uncontrollable burst of purple energy shot out from her body and knocked over a nearby tree. Karone jumped back as her anger turned to fear and shock at what had just happened. Her kinetic powers must not be mixing well with her new Phoenix powers. She remembered what her friends had told her about how she had sent them flying when they were standing outside her door once.  
With nothing else to do other than feel sorry for herself, Karone decided to practise with her kinetic powers. She hadn't used them a lot as Astronema, or while she had been on Terra Venture. But Andros had taught her a few things when she had been travelling with him and his friends. She just felt wired using her powers, as she had only used it when she was young, before she had been kidnapped.  
Getting to work Karone approached the tree she had just knocked over. She broke off a twig from the fallen tree and walked away, sitting herself down crossed legged and putting the twig down in front of her. With one hand on her knee and the other pointing at the twig with the palm of her hand, Karone attempted to use her physic powers.  
Nothing. She tried again, this time her face screwing up as she focused and with her fingers tighten up on the palm that was pointing at the twig. Still nothing. Closing her eyes and clenching her jaw she felt like she was squeezing her head as if trying to get the last of the toothpaste out of the tube. Again nothing.  
Giving up she felt a thud on the ground behind her, looking over her shoulder she saw the tree that had just fallen shake with some of its leafs falling off. As if it had just fallen over again. Karone looked at the tree puzzlingly, had she just moved the tree? She wondered looking at the now settled tree. Turning herself around on the ground she got up on one knee, resting her arm on her bent leg and aimed the palm of her hand at the tree. Not screwing up her face or focusing too hard, she slowly turned her hand over, so that her palm was now facing the sky. The tree rustles and groans as it lightly rolls on the ground. Then carefully and slowly, holding her breath, she lifts her hand up and the tree moves with it. Its branches dropping down under the force of gravity, but the truck went up.  
The astonishment hit Karone quickly and the tree dropped back down on the ground with a thud. Karone was speechless; she had just left a tree. With her mind. She was sure that not even Andros could do that and he'd been practising for way longer than she had. She looked at her hand then back at the tree, her jaw held open.  
"Incredible" she whispered to herself as she stood up, still feeling excited by what she had just done. Then from behind came the sound of snapping twigs and crushing leafs, as if someone was running. Karone turned back to look and instantly spotted the source of the noise, it was Mike. She could hardly believe her eyes as she saw him run through the woods holding a box of some sort. Leo had been right, Mike was alive. However, for Karone something still didn't make sense. So she followed Mike from behind, keeping her distance and staying low as not to be spotted.  
After a while Mike reached his destination and stopped in the middle of an open circular area. Karone moved behind a tree, staying low, and keeping her eyes on Mike. Her eyes focused on the sparkling box. What's Mike doing with that she wondered. But her thoughts quickly vanished when in a flash of green Trakeena appeared before Mike.  
"Do you have them?" asked Trakeena standing still with her staff in hand.  
"Yes my princess" said Mike kneeling.  
"What?" whispered Karone to herself in shock. Why is Mike kneeling to Trakeena, she's the bad guy. Then in a flash of blue Mike, began to transform in a large alien with large blue and gold cloak that covered most of his body. What was visible of his skin was brown with human like hands. His face was stern with baring white teeth and yellow eyes. His hair was the most eye catching feature, pointing out in all directions like a porcupine. In one hand he held the shining sliver box and in the other a gold and blue stripped staff with spiked ball on top.  
"Here, the Lights of Orion are yours" said the alien offering Trakeena the box.  
"Good job Mutantrum" said Trakeena, smiling as she took the box from the alien. Karone had no idea what the 'Lights of Orion' were, but if Trakeena wanted them she knew they weren't going to be used for good.  
"Hey!" shouts Karone jumping out from the trees into the opening. Mutantrum instantly jumps up and turns to face Karone, now at Trakeena's side.  
"Well, well if it isn't Karone" said Trakeena smugly.  
"You've been causing my friend a lot of trouble, and now it's time for you to pay" said Karone eyes narrowing on Mutantrum. She was more concerned with getting revenge for Leo than stopping Trakeena, she wasn't going to let anyone hurt him.  
"What's say we make this interesting" said Trakeena with a evil thin smile as she leaned over to Mutantrum and whispered something into his ear.  
"As you wish my princess" said Mutantrum with a bow before he stepped forwards to fight Karone.  
"Are you ready to die Ranger?" asked Mutantrum, Karone just sniggered in response.  
"I've fought a lot worse than you" said Karone with a confident smile, not even getting into a fighting stance.  
"Oh have you" said Mutantrum, but not in his voice. This voice was female and lighter, much like Karone's own. Then Mutantrum began to change again and this time it wasn't Mike he transformed into, it was Astronema. Karone's jaw dropped as her evil self appeared in front of her, with her normal evil grin.  
"What's the matter Karone, haven't you ever looked in a mirror before?" asked Mutantrum, but it didn't look or sound like Mutantrum, this was scarily similar to Astronema. Karone was speechless and paralyzed with fear. She knew it wasn't Astronema but she couldn't get the thought out of her head that it was her in front of her.  
From behind Astronema, Karone heard Trakeena laughing but she did nothing to stop her or avoid the advancing Astronema. She came in with a gut punch that Karone would have normally dodged easily but she was too messed up in the head, thoughts whirling around like a storm inside her head. Falling to the ground, Astronema continued her beating on Karone, kicking her in chest. Karone still did nothing, she was in shock from her fears coming to life. She would have been finished if not for the fact that two people jumped out behind Astronema and threw her back.  
"You ok Karone?" asked Damon as he helped her up, allowing her to lean on his shoulder.  
"He... he..." said Karone but she was still in shock and couldn't speak properly.  
"It's ok, we've got this" said Maya who was standing in front to protect Karone and Damon.  
"Oh how wrong you are" said Astronema getting off the ground and dusting herself off. "I'm the princess of evil, you are all very far from ok" explained Astronema who stepped forwards towards the three Rangers.  
"I've heard tales of Astronema, the princess of evil. She destroyed whole worlds and could defeat a whole army with the snap of her fingers. She was pure evil. But she's gone, you're no princess of evil. You're just a cheap knock off pretending to be Astronema" said Maya standing firmly as Astronema advanced. Maya's mini speech seemed to pull Karone out of her head, realising that it really was a lie. Astronema was gone, this was just a pretender in front of them.  
"You think so?" asked Astronema as she got in punching distance.  
"I know So" said Maya as the purple haired woman came at her with a punch. Maya easily dodged it and then countered with a gut punch and with Astronema stumbling back Maya finished her off with a kick to the chest sending her flying over to Trakeena. As she skidded along the ground, Mutantrum returned to his normal form.  
"Oh well it was fun while it lasted" said Trakeena rather disappointed that she hadn't gotten to see more of Astronema fighting Karone. "Stinger Wingers!" shouted Trakeena and several Sting Wingers emerged from the trees from all sides, surrounding the three Rangers.  
"Could use some help" suggested Maya looking at the large amount of Sting Wingers surrounding them.  
"On it" said Damon holding up is morpher. "Kai, can you and Kendrix get to the forest dome?"  
"Well be there soon" promised Kai.  
"Thanks" said Damon as the call ended.  
"Where's Leo asked Maya noticing that Damon hadn't called him.  
"I don't know" said Karone as she held on to Damon, trying to build her strength back up.  
"I knocked him out after he handed me the Lights of Orion" said Mutantrum with a laugh once he had gotten back up. The knowledge of Mutantrum having hurt Leo, fuelled Karone with anger and allowed her the strength to stand up on her own.  
"You ok to fight?" asked Damon looking at Karone with concern.  
"I'm fine. Just let me take care of Mutantrum" said Karone angerly. Damon nodded and the two moved to sand next to Maya, Karone in the middle with Maya on her left and Damon to her right.  
"Ready?" asked Karone.  
"Ready" said Maya and Damon in unison.  
"Phoenix Power!" announced Karone and she began to transform.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced Maya and Damon and the two transformed into their Ranger suits. With the three Rangers ready for battle, they pulled out their respective sabers and charged.  
Karone flipped over the Sting Wingers and landed just in front of Mutantrum and Trakeena. Karone spotted an easy chance to attack and took it, with one swing of her saber the box in Trakeena's hand was up in the air. Trakeena reached up desperately for it, but Karone came at her with a kick and knocked her into a nearby tree.  
As for Mutantrum he was more of a challenge, he swung with his staff and Karone had to duck under in order to avoid the attack. She then came back up spinning and struck with her saber, but Mutantrum blocked it and then managed to hit her in the side with his staff. Karone clenched her jaw, fighting threw the pain, then quickly before another attack could come she rolled away. She narrowly avoided Mutantrum's staff, which he slammed against the ground. Karone then stepped down on the staff, preventing Mutantrum from using it. Mutantrum desperately tried to lift his staff but Karone had it pinned to the ground. With a defenceless Mutantrum, Karone took her shot and swung across with her saber. Mutantrum was too focused on his staff to notice the attack that sent him flying to the ground.  
Slowly getting up, Mutantrum spotted the sparkling box next to him. He grabbed the box and ran over to Trakeena, handing her the box.  
"Here my princess, the Lights are yours again" said Mutantrum. But once again before Trakeena could take the box it was knocked from her grasp by Karone who had thrown Mutantrum's staff at them. The box was once again sent flying into the air.  
"Let's swap!" shouted Karone as she jumped into the air and grabbed the box before then bouncing back off a tree and returning to Maya and Damon, who were still fighting off Sting Wingers. "I got the Lights" said Karone as Maya and Damon retreated to her.  
"Nice" said Maya. But before the three knew what was happening several Sting Wingers had descended on them and they were feebly fighting against the masses. A lucky Sting Winger managed to pull the box from Karone's hands and jump back to hand it over to Trakeena.  
"No!" shouted Karone as she tried to get the box back but the Sting Wingers were holding her back.  
"Thank you" said Trakeena gracefully, accepting the box from the Sting Winger. "Now let's see what these can do" said Trakeena as she got ready to open the box.  
"No!" shouted the three Rangers as they tried to fight their way through the hoards of Sting Wingers. Trakeena just smiled at them and then waved over to them as she put her hand on the lid of the box, ready to lift it up. Suddenly a hand grabbed Trakeena's and pulled it away from the box.  
"I don't think so" said Kendrix, who was in her Ranger suit. With Trakeena looking at Kendrix, she hadn't noticed Kai sneak up beside her and grab the box from her hands. The two then immediately jumped towards their friends and stood back as they finished off the Sting Wingers.  
"Great job Kendrix!" said Karone thankfully as she, Maya and Damon retreated back to join them.  
"You to Kai" said Damon smiling behind his visor as he patted Kai on the back.  
"Trakeena, what are we going to do now?" asked a panicked Mutantrum, Trakeena glared at him think for a moment.  
"I'll be back. Keep them busy" ordered Trakeena as she disappeared in a flash of green.  
"But-" started Mutantrum, however Trakeena was already gone.  
"You're out numbered" said Kai with his saber in one hand and the box in the other. The other four Rangers then ran a round surrounding him, sabers all pointing at him.  
"Please, maybe we can talk about this?" said Mutantrum hopefully, his hands held up in surrender.  
"Not a chance" snarled Karone, stepping forward to attack, but Damon put his arm out in front of her to prevent her from attacking.  
"He's surrendering, we can't just attack him" said Damon in defence of the monster.  
"Yes we can. He deserves it after what he did to Leo" said Karone glaring at the monster.  
"Doesn't matter. We're better than them" said Kai from the left side of the monster that was still surrounded. Karone didn't completely agree with them, but she knew they were morally right.  
"Fine" she muttered and back down.  
"Alright come with us" said Kendrix stepping to the right of Mutantrum, with Maya on the other side, and then guiding him away.  
"Wait a minute Rangers" came Trakeena's voice. Everyone looked over and spotted her holding a small knife to an unconscious Leo's throat.  
"Leo!" shouted Karone, who tried to run towards her boyfriend but was held back by Damon. Knowing that Trakeena would kill Leo if she got close Karone had no choice but to let Damon hold her.  
"That's more like it" said Trakeena happily as she watched Karone surrender. "Now demorph" ordered Trakeena, her eyes fixed on Karone. The Rangers hesitated, unsure of wither to do it or not. Trakeena growled and pressed the blade against Leo's throat, a trickle of blood drooling down his throat.  
"Stop!" begged Karone, making Trakeena smile.  
"Demorph!" ordered Trakeena with more force. This time the Rangers did as told and their powers faded. "Mutantrum! Get over here. And you lot, line up" ordered Trakeena, all obeying her orders. With Mutantrum now at her side and the Rangers lined up ahead, Trakeena was feeling rather powerful. Ahead of Trakeena was Karone, in the middle of the line with Damon and Maya to her left and Kai and Kendrix to her right. "Now. Hand over the lights" said Trakeena looking at the box Kai still had in his hands. Kai was reluctant to do so but after a nudge from Kendrix and a plea from Karone, he agreed and stepped forwards.  
"Wait!" snapped Trakeena, eyeing Kai with care. "Throw it on the ground" she ordered. Kai did as told and threw the box down a few feet ahead of him, near Trakeena's feet. He then backed up to where the other Rangers stood and awaited his next instructions.  
"Mutantrum. Pick up it up" to which the alien ran in front and grabbed the box before retreating to his master's side. Then a moment of silence as Trakeena smiled victoriously at the Rangers.  
"You've got what you want, now give Leo back" demanded Maya looking at her helpless friend in the hands of Trakeena. Trakeena looked at her, then up at the sky as if to think.  
"No" she replied simply, looking back at the Rangers with a smile.  
"But you've got the lights, why do you need Leo?" asked Kendrix.  
"Because she can hold him over us and use him against us" pointed out Karone glaring at Trakeena.  
"Bright as ever Karone" said Trakeena with an evil giggle.  
"Huh... Wh-what-what's going on?" asked Leo as he woke up.  
"Leo" said Karone defeated and with sadness in her voice, at the fact that she couldn't help him.  
"Karone, what's happening?" asked Leo, still not fully alert.  
"You're my hostage Ranger, and you're going to keep quiet" snarled Trakeena into Leo's ear, pressing the knife against his throat so he knew his place. Karone knew she couldn't let Trakeena see her doing anything if she wanted to save Leo, but perhaps she could use her kinetic powers to get the knife away from her. Focusing on the knife in Trakeena's hand, she closed her eyes and opened her right hand but kept it at her side as not to arouse suspicion. Nothing, but she wasn't going to give up. Not with Leo's life on the line.  
"Please" whispered Karone to herself, so quietly that no one heard her. Still trying but not feeling it, she kept trying to move the knife. Opening her eyes she could see that the blade was trembling ever so slightly in Trakeena's hand. Karone had a mental hold on it. She took a step forwards and held out her hand, the palm pointing at Trakeena's knife.  
"What are you doing?" asked Trakeena, feeling the blade shake in her hand.  
"I won't let you hurt him" said Karone sternly as she slowly mover her hand across and in turn the knife moved away from Leo, along with Trakeena's hand which was holding it. Leo took his chance and hit Trakeena in the chest with his elbow before rolling away towards his friends. Getting up he wiped the blood from his neck and looked at it to confirm he was bleeding. His friends quickly gathered around him.  
"Are you ok?" asked Karone as she ran over and hugged Leo instantly, holding him so tight it actually hurt Leo.  
"I'm fine Karone, just a scratch" said Leo smiling at his friends who all joined in the hug with smiles all around.  
"Trakeena's getting away!" pointed out Kai as he looked up and saw her running away into the forest, leaving Mutantrum with a bottle of green liquid in his hand.  
"Time to go big" said the alien as he downed the whole drink in one gulp and began to grow to the size of buildings.  
"Whoa!" said Damon as he and the others jumped back to avoid the foot of the huge alien.  
"I can't help. We haven't finished fixing the Mega Ship" said Karone, looking to her friends.  
"We'll take care of Mutantrum, you go and get the lights from Trakeena" said Leo, to which Karone nodded and rushed off after Trakeena before she teleported off Terra Venture.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced the Rangers as the Galactabeasts emerged and formed the Galaxy Megazord.

Karone raced through the forest, hot on the tail of Trakeena who was only a few meters ahead of her. She was demorphed but could still take on Trakeena in a fight with ease thanks to her powers and training.  
Suddenly Trakeena turned left and ducked behind a tree and as Karone turned around she lost sight of Trakeena. Skidding to a stop, she looked around for Trakeena but she was nowhere in sight. She took a few steps forwards before getting hit on the back of the head and dropping to the ground. Rolling onto her back, before she knew what was happing she had been stunned by Trakeena with the tip of her staff. Pocking Karone in the head with the staff and sending a green static wave throughout her, Karone was paralyzed. Karone groaned as she tried to move, but nothing happened.  
"What... did... you..." even her speech was effected by the static paralysation.  
"Don't bother Karone, you won't be moving for quite a while, or ever again for that matter" said Trakeena as she put away her staff and held the Light of Orion box in both her hands. "Now, let's see what these can do" said Trakeena as she opened the box, her expression instantly changed to shock as she dropped the box. With the open box lying on the ground, Karone could see that there was nothing inside it. It was empty.  
"Where are the Lights!" shouted Trakeena in frustration as she stomped around like a moody child not getting her way.  
"Better luck next time joked Karone with a shaky smile from the ground. This earned her a glare from Trakeena, but then her expression changed to a happy one.  
"Oh well, at least I'll get to kill you" said Trakeena as she pulled out her staff and aimed the tip at Karone, ready to end her here and now. Karone continued her struggle to move but it was no good, she was frozen. "Bye bye Karone" said Trakeena as she lifted her staff up and then brought it down to finish off Karone. But something stopped her from finishing. Karone watched as some invisible force held Trakeena in her place, unable to move. Gritting her teeth Trakeena tried to continue but it was no good, the force was holding her in her place. Then suddenly she was sent flying across the forest into a tree where she was knocked out cold by impact.  
Karone tried to look up to see what had happened, but she was still paralyzed by Trakeena's staff. She could here footsteps approaching, but it couldn't be any of her friends as they were all still in the Galaxy Megazord fighting Mutantrum. Then she saw him pass her, Furio. Had he seen her or was he just ignoring her, wondered Karone as she held her breath.  
"As I suspected, you failed" said Furio looking down on Trakeena. "Your father was right, you never should have been aloud off the ship. Time to go" said Furio, lifting up Trakeena in his arms and teleporting back to the ship, leaving behind a defenceless Karone and an empty box.

Back on the ship after Trakeena woke, Furio escorted her to her father's throne room.  
"Never again Trakeena" said Scorpius shaking his head.  
"But father, I had the Purple Ranger in my hands until-" argued Trakeena, but Scorpius was having none of it.  
"It doesn't matter!" he shouted, making Trakeena jump. "You were hurt and never again will you be allowed to fight the Rangers. From now on you will remain on the ship guarded day and night" said Furio, to which two Sting Wingers stepped forwards, with Trakeena in between them.  
"Father I don't-" but once again Trakeena was silenced.  
"Silence! Now leave me in peace" ordered Furio. Trakeena did not argue, and walked out with the two Sting Wingers right behind her. Once gone Furio stepped forwards and kneeled down before Scorpius.  
"Was I wrong to let her go out?" asked Scorpius.  
"No Scorpius, she needed to find out for herself what it is like out there. It was for her own good" said Furio to which Scorpius nodded in agreement.  
"I guess your right" said Scorpius. "Did she have any luck finding the Lights of Orion?"  
"She found a dead end. But I believe she was right when she said the lights are on Terra Venture" admitted Furio.  
"You must find them Furio" ordered Scorpius.  
"I will Scorpius. But it'll be harder now that the Rangers are also looking for the lights" said Furio.  
"They do not matter. Do what you must to find those lights" ordered Scorpius and then Furio left to find an alien to assist him in finding the lights.

Back on Terra Venture, the Rangers had found Karone and taken her back to the guy's apartment. She had mostly recovered but still felt weakened from the battles of the day, but over all she was back to normal. She know sat on the back edge of the sofa with Leo, looking out into space while the others made dinner and chatted away in the kitchen.  
"Thanks by the way" said Leo abruptly while staring at the passing starts.  
"For what?" asked Karone looking over at Leo with loving eyes. He then looked over at her with a warm smile.  
"For saving my life" said Leo before giving her a kiss.  
"I guess I'll except that as a thank you" joked Karone as Leo pulled away with a loving smile, to which he kissed her again.  
"How are you doing?" asked Karone, a little concern in her voice. Leo waited a bit before replying.  
"I miss Mike" he finally admitted.  
"I know Leo. I thought I had lost my brother for a long time, but then he found me"  
"What's your point" asked Leo.  
"Don't give up. He might still be out there. No matter how unlikely, you never know when he might show up. Today taught me that" said Karone as she snuggled up to Leo and looked out into space with a smile.  
"Thank you" said Leo kissing her on the head. He truly was thankful for her. She helped him through the hard times, and today had definitely been a hard day. He spent the whole day looking for his brother and then it turned out he was an alien in disguise. But at least he still had his friends and Karone. And for him that was enough. Hearing an uproar of laughter from the kitchen, Leo looked over and then back to Karone. "I think we should go and join them" suggested Leo.  
"I think you're right" said Karone with a smile as the two got up and joined their friends in the kitchen.


	10. The Magna Defender

_Sorry I didn't upload last week and to be honest there is no real excise for it other than I'm bad at prioritizing. Sadly because I'm an idiot it will probably be like this for the next couple of months as I got bad results on my examines so will have to up my revision. But I won't forget you guys and will keep trying to get more chapters out. Sorry to annoy you with this gibberish but I just thought I'd let you know. Hope you enjoy._

 **Chapter 10: The Magna Defender**

Karone was awoken by a knock at her door. Rolling out of bed, rubbing her eyes, Karone made her way over to the door to see who would be at her door so early in the morning. Karone pressed the 'open door' button and the door slide open, Damon standing in his green jumpsuit on the other side.  
"Morning" said Damon cheerfully, with tools in hand.  
"Morning" groaned Karone back, not fully awake. It was then she remembered that she had agreed to meet up with Damon so that he could help her to fix the Mega Ship. "Let me just get dressed" said Karone waving for Damon to come in. He followed her inside and dropped his tools by the door, which closed behind him. Karone went to her closet and pulled out her normal leather jacket and pants, before then vanishing into her bathroom to change in privet.  
Now left along in the room Damon sat himself down on the sofa, with coffee table in front. In the centre of the table was a bowl of fruit, Damon could feel his stomach growl as he looked at the bowl. He probably should have eaten before coming over, but when he got working he usually forgot his hunger. However staring at the fruit now he couldn't resist the temptation to take a bite. He reached over and pulled out a banana, pealing it he licked his lips before he bite down on the soft banana.  
Shortly before finishing the banana, Karone returned, fully dressed in her normal attire with purple headband to hold her hair back. Looking over to Karone as he finished the banana, he saw Karone watching him, with her hands on her hips and raised eyebrows.  
"Help you're self" said Karone sarcastically, with a grin.  
"Sorry" muttered Damon, his mouth full of banana, making Karone shake her head while smiling.  
"It's fine" said Karone holding up her hand, so that the palm of her hand was pointing at the bowl of fruit. Suddenly the apple on top of the bowl shot across the room and into Karone's hand. The two smiled at on another before Karone bite into her apple. Damon then picked up his tools and with Karone, headed to the hanger where they had hidden the Mega Ship and Astro Shuttle.  
It didn't take long for the two reach the hanger. Terra Venture was quiet and the roads were clear as Damon drove the two seater car, everyone was still asleep this early in the morning. Pulling into the parking spot, Damon and Karone got out and made their way to the secret hanger.  
Karone and Damon set to work fast; the ship was going to need a lot of work if they were going to fix it today. Damon got to work on the rear engines and Karone made herself useful on the bridge, rewiring the controls in hopes of getting them to work. She had been going for nearly twenty minutes with her wiring job when she heard a voice.  
"Rebooting program initiated" said D.E.C.A as the little camera in the corner of the room came to life with a dim red light in the centre of its lens.  
"D.E.C.A!" said Karone happily as she slide out from under the control consol and looked up at the camera. "You feeling better?"  
"Unable to answer. I do not feel like you Karone" responded D.E.C.A in her robotic female voice.  
"Well you seem ok to me" said Karone giving the camera a look, which she wouldn't understand anyway. "What's the diagnostic of the ship?" asked Karone sliding back under the control consol to continue with her work.  
"Beginning scan. Engines down. Life support down. Scanners down. Food generator down" stated D.E.C.A going through the list of broken features.  
"How about you tell me what's working" suggested Karone.  
"Would you prefer that?" asked D.E.C.A.  
"Please"  
"As you wish. Lights functional. Doors functional. That is all" informed D.E.C.A.  
"You forgot yourself D.E.C.A" pointed out Karone.  
"I'm afraid to report that I'm not at functional power level as of now. Estimated two hours before basic functions are restored" said D.E.C.A.  
"Shame my powers can't help fix the ship" mutter Karone to herself as she reconnected two wires causing a spark.  
"Flight controls restored" informed D.E.C.A suddenly.  
"Thank you" said Karone to herself as she closed up the panel under the consol and slide out before opening up the panel of the next consol and beginning her job again. Just over an hour's amount of work past and then Damon walked into the bridge, rubbing his hands with a cloth.  
"You about done there Karone?" asked Damon as Karone closed up the panel and slide out from underneath.  
"Just finished" said Karone perkily as she stood up and smiled. She looked to the small camera before continuing. "D.E.C.A, you close to finishing your reboot?" she asked hopefully.  
"Basic functions are nearly restored" reported D.E.C.A making Damon jump.  
"What's that?" asked Damon shocked as he looked at the red glowing camera.  
"Oh! Sorry. This is D.E.C.A" said Karone, presenting the small camera in the corner of the room.  
"Hi..." said Damon with an awkward wave, unsure of how to respond to the computer.  
"Hello Damon" replied D.E.C.A.  
"It knows my name?" said Damon, even more shocked.  
"I've been watching you on the ship for a while now, per Karone's orders" said D.E.C.A to which Damon looked over to Karone.  
"I may have asked her to do that" said Karone playing innocent as she put her hands behind her back and fluttered her eyelashes. Damon just laughed at her acting and moved on.  
"Anyway, I've got the engines semi repaired. She should be good to fly but I wouldn't be taking her out for any long distance runs"  
"Will I be able to for the Megazord?" asked Karone hopefully, with an uneasy smile.  
"We're a few hours work away from that. The ship won't be completely fixed for a few more days but, I recon we'll have it Megazord functional by the end of the day" said Damon with a grin to which Karone smiled.  
"Back to work then" said Karone before she slide under the third consol and Damon made his way to the outside of the ship to repair some of the holes and dents.

Awhile later in the mountain dome, Leo had returned to cave where he had found the box which they had believed contained the Lights of Orion, until Trakeena had opened it up. Since then Leo had been thinking. The cave was clearly important, why else would they have the door that guarded it. They wouldn't have bothered to put in the door if they didn't want to keep people out, or keep something in. By that logic there must be something more important in the cave. Something that might lead them to the lights. It certainly wasn't in the box. Kai and Kendrix had run several tests through the night and none of them had given them any answers as to where the Lights might be. So the box wasn't it, so what was the cave really hiding.  
Standing before the cave's entrance, Leo couldn't help but feel uneasy. Considering the last time he had been here was when Mutantrum had been disguised as Mike and stolen the box from him, it wasn't hard for this place to make him feel uncomfortable. Thinking of Mike these last few days and then seen him hadn't made getting over the loss of his brother any easier, but after his discussion with Karone he wasn't whole sure Mike was dead. Perhaps he was back, and if he was this cave was definitely a clue to finding him. Leo could feel it in his gut.  
Leo couldn't decide whether to morph or not, he wasn't sure what to expect but a fight was one of the more likely options. And since no one knew he was here it was unlikely his friends would be coming. Kai, Kendrix and Maya were all at work and Damon had the day off and was helping Karone with the Mega ship. His plan was to check the cave and then head over and help the two with the repairs, but if there was a chance at finding Mike he was going to take it. He knew Karone would understand, like she said she had to once search for her brother to. When she was Astronema, it had taken her awhile to find out it was Andros. She knew what it was like to lose family and then to go searching for them in hopes that they weren't truly lost.  
"I'm coming Mike" said Leo as he walked into the cave, whatever he found, Leo was ready. Walking carefully and slowly through the cave, Leo kept on looking around, just encase he caught a glimpse of something, anything. He quickly reached the spot where the box had been the first time he entered the cave, only now it was much darker and there nothing to be found.  
Continuing on only slightly further, Leo found himself at a dead end. Pressing against the wall in hopes of another secret entrance like before, he found no such luck and was forced to turn around. He cursed several times as he walked slowly back along the cave, hoping that he might spot something that would help him. But nothing.  
Stepping out into the fresh air and warm sun Leo felt only disappointment. Perhaps he'd set his hopes to high in wanting to find a direct link to Mike, it was most likely that Mutantrum had only changed into Mike to lower his defences. The cave had no link to Mike.  
Leo was snapped out of his thoughts from a sudden attack from behind that sent him flying away from the cave. Looking up he saw the nearby the cave's entrance was Furio, who looked as if he had been waiting for Leo to come out.  
"Why hello Red Ranger" said Furio mockingly as he stood up and walked forwards so that he stood in front of the cave's entrance, looking down on Leo.  
"What do you want?" asked Leo getting up.  
"Same as you, the Lights of Orion" said Furio as he drew his sword. "Though I'm guess you found nothing in there. But perhaps that's just because you weren't looking in the right places" teased Furio before suddenly charging at Leo.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced Leo, transforming into his Ranger suit just as Furio knocked him back down him. Rolling across the ground, Leo managed to recover and get back to his feet pulling out his saber in turn. "Let's do this Furio" said Leo with fight in his voice as he ran forwards and clashed blades with Furio. He could have taken his chance to call for help but he was confident he could take Furio on his own; he might later come to regret that decision.  
Breaking away from his attack, Leo had to switch to defence as Furio swung at him horizontally. He managed to lean back and avoid the attack but only had a second to recover before side stepping the next attack and then rolling under the third attack. Rising back up Leo had to block Furio's next attack with his saber, but then got his chance for a counter attack. Moving quickly he managed to attack Furio from the right, then the left, then with a downwards slice, all of which Furio blocked. The two collided again, weapons locked in the heat of battle.  
"That all you got Red Ranger" mocked Furio, despite the sweet on his brow.  
"You wish" snapped Leo, Furio clearly getting to him. Breaking off the attack he dropped down and slashed at Furio's feet, forcing him to retreat backwards. Leo then continued through with his attack by swinging at Furio from all sides, after seven or eight hits he finally manages to break Furio's defences and hit his arm. Then twirling around while Furio was off balance Leo managed to strike Furio's waist with a clear blow. Furio groaned in pain as he slashed back hitting Leo across the chest and forcing him backwards.  
The two stopped for a moment catching their breath before raising their weapons for the next round. However, before the two got within striking distance of one another they were both shot down. "What was that?" asked Leo to himself as he looked up to see that Furio was also on the ground. But if it wasn't Furio then who was it? It couldn't have been the other Rangers. They wouldn't have hit him and it couldn't have been Sting Wingers as they would never hit their leader.  
Looking over he found who had shot them. A black armoured warrior, with yellow horned helmet, green emerald chest plate and black cape with red underlining. In his hand he held a black and yellow blaster, which he pumped like a shotgun to reload.  
"Who are you!" demanded Furio standing up to face this new opponent. The stranger didn't answer him, instead he just pointed his blaster at him and fired another burst of shots knocking Furio back down.  
"Stay down" ordered the stranger, but he didn't sound like he cared what Furio did. Leo got to his feet slowly but like Furio was shot down again only this time was sent flying back across the ground. Lying on his back Leo watched as stranger made his way into the cave and Furio teleported out and retreat back to the Scorpion Stinger. He was now alone on the battlefield. Trying to get back up, Leo couldn't find the strength and as he dropped back down he lost his powers and his suit faded away in dim flash of red. He was now unconscious on the ground.

A sudden beep from their morphers brought Karone and Damon out of their working mind sets. The beep repeated, four beeps then a pause before repeating again and again.  
"What's up with this thing?" asked Karone looking at her morpher with confusion.  
"It's the emergency signal I programmed in encase one of us got knocked out when we were alone" said Damon as he pressed some buttons on his morpher. "The signals coming from Leo's morpher" the mention of 'Leo' caused Karone to jump instantly into a state of panic.  
"What! Where is he?" she asked in a panic as she grabbed hold of Damon's arm tightly, her finger nails digging into his skin through his green jumpsuit.  
"Ow!" said Damon looking at her and then down at her nails, to which Karone realised her grip. "It says he's in the mountain dome" said Damon. And with that Karone was off, running out the Mega Ship at full speed, wanting to get to Leo before anything happened to him. "Hey wait up!" shouted Damon as he followed.  
Upon reaching the mountain dome, Karone jumped out of the car before Damon had even pulled it to a stop. She raced across the hills with a rather tired Damon not far behind. While in the car Karone had managed to pin point Leo's location with help from Damon and she was now just couple of meters from sight of him. Running up the hill she took a sort moment to catch her breath as she scanned the ground a head for Leo. She spotted him easily, lying on the ground unconscious and demorphed.  
"Leo!" Karone shouted as she started running down the hill as Damon just caught up to her. Sighing in between his exhausting deep breaths, he continued onwards towards his friends. Sliding down on her knees, Karone stopped by Leo's head and pulled him up so that his head rested on her knees. "Leo. Leo can you hear me?" asked Karone but Leo didn't respond. Damon then arrived and bent down on one knee to examine Leo.  
"We need to get him back to the Mega Ship so we can bandage him up and check for any internal injuries" said Damon looking to Karone, who just lightly nodded. Karone gave Leo's forehead a light kiss before switching with Damon, who carried the weight of Leo's upper body while Karone carried his legs. Together the two made it back to the car and put Leo in the passenger seat strapping him in so that he wouldn't fall out.  
"There's not enough room for both of us" Damon pointed out. With Leo in the car there was only room for the driver now.  
"You go" said Karone.  
"Are you sure?"  
"You know what you're doing. Go back, get the others and make sure he's ok" said Karone sternly.  
"Sure thing" said Damon going around the car and sliding into the seat. "Want me to come back for you?"  
"I'll find my own my back. Just keep him safe" said Karone with a half smile before Damon drove off back to the main dome, only a trail of dust following him. Once the car was far enough away, Karone turned back and headed towards the cave, where Leo had been. She didn't know why he had been there but there was a reason and she was going to find out what it was. Plus she wanted to get a little pay back for Leo. He still hadn't recovered from their previous encounter with Mutantrum and was weak, whoever he'd fought took advantage of that and was going to pay for hurting him.  
Back at the cave, Karone was examining the area were Leo had been lying. From the footprints around the area she could see that Leo had only been fighting one opponent. They had fought for a bit and then both went down at one point or another, indicated by the sandy craters of two bodies. Looking around Karone found another set of footprints, but whoever these belonged to hadn't been involved in the fight. The tracks were as fresh as Leo's meaning he might have noticed him and left him, or he was the one who ended the fight.  
Curiosity drove her to follow the tracks into the cave, were it instantly got harder to follow because of the lack of light. Going deeper into the cave, Karone could hear a banging of sorts, metal against rock. Was someone mining in here? She wondered following her ears towards the echoing 'tin, tan' noise up ahead. Reaching the back of the cave, she found what she was looking for. It was a man, of sorts, in black armour and cap mining with a rusty old pickaxe.  
"Hey!" shouted Karone, over his mining so that he could hear her. The stranger turned around sharply and dropped the pickaxe, looking at him now Karone saw he wore a helmet with yellow horns on the side and had a green emerald in the centre of his chest plate.  
"You should not be here" said the stranger threateningly.  
"Why?" asked Karone curiously as she looked at the stranger before her. What was he looking for in this cave and why didn't he want her or anyone else to be here. She was forced to lean back suddenly when the stranger wiped out his sword and swung forwards, Karone only narrowly dodging it. "Hey! What's your problem?" asked Karone annoyed by the sudden attack. But the stranger ignored her pointless question and swung again, this time to avoid it Karone cartwheeled backwards and when she came back up she got into a fighting stance. Again the stranger came at her with a swing of the sword but this time Karone grabbed hold of the swords handle, stopping the attack. The stranger easily pulled the sword from Karone's grip but she just needed to get close to him. She kicked low forcing the stranger to lose ground and then followed with a round house kick which the stranger blocked with his sword hand. Losing grip of his sword, it flew across the cave and hit the floor.  
Now that it was a fair fight Karone went in hard with several jabs most of which the stranger blocked, but some got through. Eventually the stranger caught one of Karone's punches with his hand and took hold. He pulled her in and grabbed Karone by the throat with his free hand. Karone tried to pull herself free with her free hand but it was no good. He was to strong and began tightening is grip around Karone's throat, she couldn't breathe.  
"You should have stayed out of my way" snarled the stranger as he watched the life begin to leave Karone.  
"And you shouldn't underestimate me" said Karone, though not much of it was understandable as her throat was begin squeezed. She closed her eyes and tried to muster up some kinetic force to push the stranger away but none came. She tried again but still nothing. She would pass out unless she did something fast, but she couldn't think. Her vision was going blurry and she couldn't hear anything. Still trying to claw herself free the stranger wasn't fazed by her pathetic attempts to free herself. Suddenly she grabbed hold of the stranger's arms, and then used it to help swing up and kick the stranger high in the head.  
The stranger let go and stumbled back holding his head as Karone dropped to the ground breathing heavily, taking in as much air as she could. She lay on the ground for a while, waiting for the stranger to attack her. But he didn't. Once confident enough Karone rolled over and looked around, but there was no one in sight. He was gone. But why? He had her dead to rights and he just up and left after she got lucky.  
Lucky was definitely the word to describe it, if her instincts hadn't taken over she'd be dead. She dusted herself off after her breathing returned to normal and stood up. Walking over to where the man had been mining, Karone ran her fingers along the large crack he had made. Whatever was in this wall, Karone had to get it before the man returned. She pulled out her Phoenix Saber and with a few slashes against the rock it fell away reviling a small egg like stone inside. Pulling it out Karone looked it over; it was giving off a kind of heat and was warm. This must have been what he was looking for, but why was this rock so important? Karone knew the best people to ask would be Kai and Kendrix. She put away her Phoenix Saber and carried the small rock in both hands as she made her way to the nearest train station in order to get back to her friends.

Arriving back at the Mega Ship, Karone found all of her friends in the medical bay with Leo on a table and Kendrix checking his injuries.  
"How's he doing" asked Karone as she pushed past Kai and Maya to Leo's side with Kendrix and Damon on the other side of the table.  
"He seems to be fine. A few injuries, but those should heal over time. What he really needs is rest" said Kendrix looking up from Leo and to Karone as she talked.  
"What's that?" asked Maya noticing the egg shaped rock in Karone's hand.  
"I'm not sure. I was hoping that Kai and Kendrix could run some tests on it" said Karone turning to Kai and holding out the rock.  
"That shouldn't be a problem" said Kai taking the rock and rolling it over in his hands. "It's warm" he commented looking at the rock, slightly bewildered.  
"Leo's stable so me and Kai can go now and start running our tests" said Kendrix as she walked around the table and head for the door with Kai. "Call us if he changes" ordered Kendrix as the two left the others in the medical bay.  
"Has he said anything?" asked Karone looking to Damon across the table, but Damon could only shake his head.  
"He's been out the whole time" he answered.  
"Any idea when he'll wake up?" asked Karone.  
"Kendrix said it could be an hour, maybe more" said Maya, a look of worry on her face.  
"What do you think happened?" asked Damon looking at Leo's wounds.  
"Probably another of Scorpius' monsters" suggested Maya.  
"I don't think so" said Karone aloud, unaware she had attracted the attention of both Maya and Damon.  
"Why?" asked Maya.  
"There was some guy in the cave, black armour. He told me to leave and when I didn't he tried to kill me" said Karone looking from Maya to Damon.  
"We'll have to keep an eye out for this guy" said Damon as he walked around to leave. "I'm going to get back to fixing the scanners"  
"I'll help" said Maya abruptly as she followed Damon out, leaving Karone with Leo. She stood by him and stroked his cheek. She wished he'd wake up so that she could find out what had happened to him. Then perhaps they might find out who this new stranger was. She pulled up a chair from the side and sat herself down next to Leo and just watched him, breath. In, and out. In, and out. As he slept she smiled at her cute boyfriend. He'd be fine, she knew it, Leo wasn't the type to give up after something like this. He'd only get stronger as would she, they were a team.

Later in the Command Centre for Terra Venture, Kai and Kendrix were in the lab sector running tests on the mysterious egg shaped rock that Karone had brought to them. So far none of the tests were giving back any unusual results, so they still had no idea what was causing the heat coming off the rock.  
"That's it!" announced Kai in frustration as he grabbed the rock and took it over to another table before setting it down and grabbing a handle laser with a long wire attached to the wall.  
"What are you doing Kai?" asked Kendrix who ran over and snatched back the stone. "You can't just break it open"  
"Come on Kendrix. We're not getting anything out of the tests other than 'it's a rock'. We might as well break it open and see if there's something inside that we can run tests on rather than run more tests that just tell us the same thing" pointed out Kai. Kendrix could see the logic in his argument but was cautious as she didn't want to miss anything.  
"Ok" she finally said, unwilling to admit her eagerness to find out what was inside. She put the rock back down and then she and Kai put on protective goggles before activating the laser. After a minute or so of attempting to cut through the rock and getting nowhere Kai turned off the laser and both leaned inwards to inspect the rock.  
"How is this rock still in one piece?" asked Kai bewildered. "This is the strongest laser we've got and it did nothing"  
"Unbelievable" said Kendrix holding up the rock and examining the spot where the laser had hit it, not a scratch on it. "I think we're going to need to run more tests" said Kendrix who then put the rock in a box and sealed it up. "I'll take it to the other lab and get started, you go and check on Leo and Karone. Make sure they're doing ok" said Kendrix, concerned.  
"Sure, but they'll be fine. You know those two, tough as nails" said Kai with a reassuring hand on Kendrix's shoulder. The two smiled at one another before they realised that they were having a moment and quickly pulled away.  
"I-I-I'm..." Kendrix stuttered in embracement.  
"Ye I should-should... you know" Kai said, also stuttering from embracement.  
"Of course... I'll just take this to the lab then" said Kendrix grabbing the box before racing out of the room and heading to the lift that took her back down to the main dome. Her checks had gone red hot, but were slowly cooling down as the lift moved. Moving past her moment with Kai, she straightened herself up and pushed her glasses back up her noise before the lift doors opened. She had to stay focused for now, this rock was clearly important. There would be time later for her and Kai to walk around their obvious attraction to one another later.  
Kendrix made her way over to one of the small cars and turned on the engine, sitting the metal case with the rock inside on the passage seat while she drove. The lab was located on the edge of the dome and was quiet a drive, but Kendrix didn't mind. She enjoyed driving through the city and watching the buildings and people go by.  
But while driving, a sudden attack forced Kendrix to dive from the car as it spun out of control and crashed. The rock was then sent flying from the case and landed on the ground ahead of Kendrix who now lay on the ground. Looking up Kendrick saw a blue ball shaped alien rummaging through the car, searching for something.  
"Where is it? Where is it?" muttered the alien to himself as he looked up and spotted Kendrix, and the rock in front of her. "The Lights" said the alien with his blue tongue sticking out and leather cloths that covered his legs and chest, but not his arms.  
"The Lights" whispered Kendrix looking at the rock, astonished by this sudden knowledge that it contained the Lights of Orion. The alien advanced on her eyes fixed on the rock. Kendrix crawled forwards and covered the rock with her body, holding it close to her chest.  
"I'll be taki-" the alien was cut off by sudden laser fire that sent him flying into the nearby flipped car Kendrix had been driving. Looking back Kendrix found the source of the blasts, a man dressed in black armour all over. He walked with his blaster in both hands and stopped, Kendrix directly to his left. Then a sharp turn and he held out his hand, for her to give him the rock, resting the blaster on his shoulder. Kendrix knew what he wanted and got to her feet shaking her head and stepping back, the stranger following her step for step.  
"Give it to me" demanded the stranger his voice ruff and heavy. Then he was suddenly hit by two purple feathers which exploded on impact and sent the armoured man backwards. However he did not fall, only skid backwards on his feet. He looked up to see that a full morphed Karone and three other Rangers had arrived and formed a protective line in between him and Kendrix, who still had the rock.  
"Who's this?" asked Maya.  
"I don't know but he wants the rock" said Kendrix, holding it tight to her chest.  
"He's the guy I fought in the cave" pointed out Karone stepping forwards, "And I bet he's the same one how attacked Leo" she added.  
"I don't know what you're talking about"  
"Looks like us, only red" said Damon jokingly but it seemed to jog the strangers memory.  
"You mean that pathetic excuse of a warrior" said the stranger dismissively. Karone gritted her teeth as she tightened her grip on her saber and swung forwards, but the stranger easily side stepped her attack and took her out with a single shot. Karone rolled across the ground, losing grip on her saber and demorphing from the direct hit to the head. She was unconscious.  
"Karone!" shouted Damon in concern while Kai and Maya jumped up, slashing downwards with their sabers. The stranger however managed to block easily with his blaster before kicking away Kai and then twirled backwards and shooting Maya back into Damon. He then holstered his weapon on his belt and pulled out the back of the blaster to reveal it was also a sword.  
Kai once again ran at the warrior swing his saber but again the stranger blocked every one of Kai's attacks before countering with a slash across the chest, a cut to the arm, slice against the leg and a final kick to the chest finished him off.  
Three Ranger now lay down, near defeated, one unconscious and the last unmorphed one protectively holding a rock.  
"I won't ask again. Give me that rock" ordered the stranger advancing on Kendrix, sword in hand. Kendrix had no time to decide as the two were suddenly blaster by the alien that had been watching the fight between the Rangers and the black armoured warrior. Kendrix lost her grip of the rock and it flew over towards the alien who caught it with ease.  
"Thanks, you guys 'rock'" joked the alien before teleporting away.  
"You fool" said the stranger striking Kendrix with punch to the face, knocking her back down before she could get up.  
"Stop!" shouted Kai as he tackled the stranger, but he didn't have the strength to take him down. The stranger acted quickly and clasped his hands together before slamming them down on Kai's back with such force that Kai all but instantly dropped to the ground defeated.  
"Stay out of my way or next time you won't be getting back up" snarled the stranger as he stepped over Kai's body and picked up his sword which he'd dropped when Kai attacked him.  
"Wait" said Maya from the ground reaching up to the stranger. "Who are you?" she asked.  
"I'm the one who's going to kill Scorpius" said the stranger who then walked away leaving the defeated Rangers behind.

Elsewhere the alien that had stolen the rock was meeting with Furio and another alien named Samuron who dressed in black and red Chinese style armoured, like an old fashioned samurai.  
"Well done Ruptor" said Furio taking the rock from the blue ball alien. "Time to open up this rock and retrieve the Lights of Orion" said Furio placing the rock down on another larger rock, like a piece of bread on a chopping board.  
"Oh goodie, this is going to be great" squealed Ruptor in excitement as he jumped around. Fruio pulled out his sword and then raised it above his head before slamming it down against the rock with all his might, sending out sparks and a large cloud of smoke. The three aliens coughed as the smock cleared, only to reveal that Furio hadn't even left a crack.  
"What!" exclaimed Furio in amazement as he grabbed the rock and looked at it.  
"Allow me Furio" said Samuron, before slashing at the rock several time with his spear but again nothing came of the violent attack.  
"Why don't we try together" suggested Ruptor to which Furio nods.  
"Three. Two. One" Furio counted down and then the three all attacked the same spot of the rock at the same time, all then getting sent flying by the dust cloud.  
"Did we do it?" asked Ruptor getting up slowly while Furio raced back to the rock, smooth as it had always been.  
"Impossible!" shouted Furio enraged. "How are we supposed to get the Lights if we can't break through this stupid rock!" shouted Furio to the sky.  
"Perhaps the Ranger could break through the rock" suggest Samuron.  
"And how to you purpose we get them to do that?" asked Furio.  
"We could ask him" said Ruptor pointing to the figure in black armour approaching them from across the field of rubble.  
"It's him again" said Furio angrily. "We won't need the Rangers, he'll do. Samuron, get that man to break open that rock" ordered Furio throwing the rock over to Samuron who caught it as Furio retreated in a flash of green and left the two aliens to fight the stranger.

Back on the Mega Ship, Karone was just coming to, her vision de-blurring as she sat up.  
"Easy now, you got hit pretty badly" said Kendrix who helped Karone of the table she had been lying on. As they walked out the room, Kendrix holding Karone the whole way until Karone released herself and gave Kendrix a smile to show she was ok.  
"What happened exactly?" asked Karone as they walked through the corridor, her head still shaking.  
"You got knocked out by the black armoured warrior and Scorpius' alien managed to steal the lights" said Kendrix sadly.  
"The Lights?" Karone said confused looking at her friend.  
"I think that stone may have contained the Lights of Orion" admitted Kendrix, defeat in her voice.  
"And how's Leo doing?" asked Karone, which was the most important question in her opinion. There would be time later to retrieve the Lights of Orion.  
"He's awake. Kai and Maya are helping Damon with the scanners and are trying to find the warrior so we can have a... chat I guess" said Kendrix coming to a stop outside the room Leo was being treated in. "I'll leave you and Leo alone" said Kendrix with a soft smile as she continued on down the corridor and left Karone who walked into the room were Leo was sitting up, waiting for her.  
"Heard you got your butt handed to you" said Leo with a grin which earned him a friendly punch in the arm from Karone. "OW!" said Leo, overacting as he rubbed the spot where Karone had hit him.  
"Oh shut up. You've taken worse" teased Karone before giving the spot a kiss, making Leo smile.  
"All better" he said jokingly and the two laughed.  
"You feeling better?" asked Karone.  
"I'm great" lied Leo, Karone could see from just the number of bandages on his body that he wasn't anything above physical pain, far from ok never mind 'great'. "I would be out helping the others if Kendrix hadn't strapped me to the bed" said Leo nodding to the strap around his waist and legs, this made Karone laugh. "I've tried to get out twice already. She was getting sick of it so I'm here until Kendrix says otherwise"  
"You poor thing" said Karone sarcastically, making a pouting face which Leo found amusing.  
"Kendrix told me you fought the guy in black armour before"  
"Was he the one who did this to you?" asked Karone, trying not to be too pushy, Leo nodded.  
"He caught me off guard while I was fighting Furio"  
"Leo" said Karone disappointingly as she shook her head. "... What were you doing up at the cave anyway?" she asked wanting to know.  
"I was looking for clues, thought maybe I'd find something there linking to Mike" admitted Leo a tear in his eye.  
"Oh Leo" said Karone, as she leaned in and hugged him before he let it out.  
"I just thought that since Mutantrum was Mike and he led me there... I don't know I just wanted to find something linking to Mike" said Leo as he cried into Karone's shoulder.  
"It's ok Leo" she said reassuringly as she rubbed his back. "I promise you Leo, the second we find anything linking to Mike. We'll all be there to help you. But we have to do it together" she said looking him in the eye, those sad tearful eyes.  
"Your right" said Leo rubbing away the tears and putting on a brave smile. Karone wanted to tell him that he didn't need to fake smiles with her, but her intuition told her that it was more for him than her.  
"You get some rest. I'll be back soon to check up on you" said Karone turning to leave. "I'll see what I can do about getting doctor Kendrix to let you out early" joked Karone looking back before walking towards the bridge of the Mega Ship.  
On the bridge, Karone walked in to find the four Rangers all huddled around the scanner, watching something. She joined the group and got up on her tip toes so that she could see over them and at what they were looking at. It was the black armoured warrior, they'd found him.  
"Where is he?" asked Karone making everyone jump, they hadn't heard her come in.  
"Karone?" said Kendrix surprised that she hadn't spent more time with Leo.  
"Where is he?" asked Karone again, this time more forceful. The four Rangers looked to one another before answering.  
"We think you should sit this one out Karone" said Kai, since no one else would say it.  
"Why?" asked Karone, hurt by their decision.  
"This is too personal for you. They guy hurt Leo and you clear want to get back at him" said Kendrix.  
"And you don't" snapped Karone, glaring at Kendrix.  
"Karone hold on" pleaded Maya but Karone's anger was flaring up.  
"Why should I. He hurt your friend and you just want to stand by and let him do whatever he wants"  
"We're not saying that, we just want to talk to him first before we do something stupid" said Kai.  
"Talking to him is stupid. You've seen what he's done to Leo and how he attacked us"  
"Only because you attacked him" said Kendrix getting annoyed with the angry Karone. Karone quickly came to the realisation that Kendrix was right.  
"Ok you're right... But I'm still coming" said Karone stubbornly, looking at the floor shamefully.  
"Let's go then" said Kai, unsure of Karone, as he led the way out with the other four Rangers behind him.

"Hand over the Lights" ordered the stranger holding out his hand, with the other on the handle of his sword.  
"Come and get them" taunted Samuron who held the rock in one hand and his spare in the other. "Sting Wingers!" he shouted and an army of them appeared in between him and the stranger. "Think you can take all of them?" asked Samuron smugly to the Stranger.  
"With ease" said the stranger pulling out his sword. Unbeknownst to the many fighters below the five able Rangers had arrived and were atop a nearby cliff looking down on the battlefield.  
"Get down" ordered Kai and all the Rangers dropped onto their stomachs and crawled to the edge of the cliff so that they could see the battlefield. A quick glace told them all they needed to know, that the stranger was out numbered.  
"Should we help him?" asked Damon looking to the others.  
"Why should we" snapped Karone looking down, secretly hoping the Sting Wingers would defeat the stranger. Kendrix looked over to Kai hoping he'd argue against Karone, but he just nodded his head in agreement.  
"No sense in getting caught in the middle of him and that rock. At least not for now" said Kai, his eyes looking at the rock which Samuron held.  
"Well, don't just stand there. Attack already!" shouted Ruptor and the Sting Wingers charged, the stranger not even flinching at the army ahead of him. He stood his ground and waited for his moment. Then just as the army was about slam into him, he struck.  
He slashed from his bottom left and swung the sword up over his shoulder taking out the three Sting Wingers that ran straight into the sword's swing. He swiftly turned and then slashed back down taking out another two, before several Sting Wingers came at him from all sides. He bent down on one knee as the monsters clashed blades, their weapons catching on one another so they couldn't finish their attack. With one move he managed to take all of them out, by slicing them across the chest, spinning on the ground before arising over the fallen bugs.  
Another one jumped at him and swung from above, however the Stanger saw it coming and caught the alien's blade with his free hand before throwing him over his shoulder towards the Sting Wingers behind them. He then turned back and blocked a low attack and then swung his sword back around and struck the attacking Sting Winger so hard that sparks came off the spot where he had struck the monster.  
"WHOA!" said Damon impressed the warrior's fighting ability, "This guys something else".  
"He makes it look so easy" added Maya.  
"He's experienced that's for sure" said Karone bluntly, not willing to give the man much credit considering he had beaten her and the others once already. Watching him closely though, it was impossible for Karone not to be impressed. He moved like he had eyes on the back of his head, always knowing where the next attack was coming from. He knew where everything on the battlefield was and even when it seemed he would go down he never gave up.  
The Rangers watched as five Sting Wingers crushed down on the stranger's sword, all five of their weapons pressing against the sword, but still the man did not give up. He pushed the five beasts off and then slashed across turning around and sending the Sting Wingers flying. After that the warrior put away his sword and pulled out his blaster, the sword now back inside the blaster. He gave the blaster one pump with his left hand and then aimed at the remaining Sting Wingers. With one blast he sent everyone of the creatures up into the air and watched as they fell back down to the ground.  
"Who the heck is this guy?!" shouted Ruptor in shock as the stranger turned to face both him and Samuron, who had seem him easily destroy their entire army.  
"I'm the Magna Defender" he announced as he once again pumped the blaster and aimed it at the two aliens, "and I want that stone" he demanded, standing his ground.  
"Should we do something now?" asked Damon, looking to Kai. Kai's response was a stern nod.  
"Right, Damon and Kendrix, you get that rock. Maya, Karone and I will deal with the Defender and try and cover you from the aliens once you got the rock" said Kai, looking to three of the four Rangers who nodded back to him in agreement.  
"You ready Karone?" asked Kai looking to his other side, but Karone had vanished. "Karone? Karone?! Where did she go?" asked Kai looking back to the others who had found her. Karone had gone down to the battlefield and was meters away from Magna Defender, facing him sternly. It took a moment for the Magna Defender to acknowledge her, by turning his blaster on her.  
"What do you want Ranger?" asked the Defender, clearly not happy to see her.  
"I'm here to help" said Karone not intimidated by the Magna Defender's gun pointing at her.  
"I don't need your help" said the Defender turning his blaster back onto the two aliens.  
"Tough, I'm not going. So how about you don't attack me and I don't attack you" said Karone, the Magna Defender fell silent. Karone couldn't be sure but she could feel that out the corner of his visor the Magna Defender was looking at her.  
"Fine. Just don't get in my way" he snarled.  
"Same to you" replied Karone.  
"Enough talk!" shouted Ruptor suddenly as he fired blue blots of lightening from his staff at both Karone and the Magna Defender. However both had seen it coming from a mile away. Karone dodged with a cartwheel to the left and the Magna Defender avoided the blast by rolling to the right, both passing each other before landing on their feet. Simultaneously charging forwards, the Magna Defender drew his sword and Karone shouted "Phoenix Power!" and morphed with her Phoenix Saber in hand.  
Karone headed straight for Ruptor and slashed down but he blocked it with his staff, while the Magna Defender and Samuron clashed blades. Samuron managed to counter quickly and forced Magna Defender away from Karone and Ruptor, attacking fast and furiously while the Magna Defender blocked. He was losing this fight and need to gain control otherwise it could be a very short fight. He ducked under one of Samuron's swipes and then came up slashing upwards against Samuron's chest. But the alien would not be defeated so easily, as he struck back with a heavy swing that managed to hit the Magna Defender in the head. His vision was dizzy and he could feel himself stumbling backwards. He looked back to his opponent and then felt the next attack strike hit his chest. He fell to the ground, his sword skidding across the ground. He tried to reach for his sword but was pinned by Samuron.  
"Now you die, Magna Defender!" shouted Samuron as he pierced the Magna Defeneder's armour, but not before Karone throw over four purple feathers that knocked Samuron away from the Magna Defender. He looks over as Karone who blocks an attack from Ruptor, the two meet eyes and Karone grins to herself as the Defender picks up his sword and continues his fight with Samuron.  
Meanwhile she was having an easy time with Ruptor, he was a clumsy fighter and easy to trick. She blocked everyone of his attacks and had been toying with the alien for the whole fight.  
"Die!" shouted Ruptor as he charged at Karone with the staff ahead of him. Karone easily sidestepped the attack and tripped the alien up before hitting him while he was down. Karone wasn't sure why she kept going, Ruptor was defeated but she continued to slash at the alien anyway.  
"Please Stop!" screamed the defenceless alien from the ground as Karone cut away at him, showing no sign of stopping. She had no idea how long she had been going at him but if it wasn't for Kai grabbing her saber wielding hand she could have gone for hours.  
"That's enough Karone!" he shouted and she was snapped from her trance, instantly demorphing and her saber vanishing with her suit. She was astonished by what she had been doing and looking at her friends' faces, it must have looked extremely violent.  
"Sorry" she said, ashamed of herself for her violent outburst, looking at the ground.  
"It's ok" said Kai reassuring her with a rub on the back. A scream from Samuron as Magna Defender's attack caught the attention of the Rangers. The Magna Defender was now clearly winning the fight as he slashed several times at Samuron's chest forcing him backwards. Samuron clutched his burnt chest as black smock floated away from the cuts across his chest.  
"Time to finish this" said Magna Defender. He jumped high in the air, forward flipped three times and then cut down with the sword sending out a blue slash of energy that cut right through Samuron destroying him. As the smock cleared from what remained of Samuron, Magna Defender turned to the Rangers and pulled out his blaster and fired towards Karone.  
She instinctively Ducked under the blast, unaware of the fact that Ruptor had gotten up behind her and was about to attack. The blast his Ruptor and sent him flying before exploding in a ball of flames. Looking at the now dead Ruptor behind her, Karone turned back to the Magna Defender who holstered his blaster on his waist. He was done. "We're even" said the Magna Defender looking at Karone, letting a moment pass before he turned away and walked off with his cape flowing behind him in the wind. He stopped on his way to pick up the stone, in his bare hand the stone broke in two and fell back to the ground. Empty, just like the box. "As I suspected" muttered Magna Defender, still better safe than sorry he thought before continuing on his way.  
"That was amazing" said Maya watching in awe as the black armoured warrior walked away.  
"And dangerous" added Kendrix looking at him with slight disgust for how he had killed both the aliens.  
"Either way I don't think it's the last we've seen of him. Come on, let's get back to the Mega Ship and check on Leo" suggested Kai as four of the five Rangers turned to leave. Karone however waited for a moment, watching the Magna Defender. There was something about him, Karone didn't know what it was but she felt some kind of connection to this new warrior.  
"Come on Karone" yelled Damon back to her, only just realising that Karone wasn't following.  
"Coming!" shouted Karone as she jogged over to her friends and they continued on their way back to the ship.

"So once again we came to a dead end in our search for the Lights of Orion" said Leo shaking his head, summarising what Karone had told him. Karone couldn't argue with him and just nodded her head, with a 'fed up' face.  
"Sorry I didn't get the Magna Defender, but I couldn't just attack him after he saved me" said Karone sadly as she stroked his check, Leo then took her hand in his and smiled at her.  
"It's fine. I'll have a word with him next time we meet. But you did the right thing fighting with him to defeat Scorpius' monsters" said Leo with a proud smile.  
"Thanks" said Karone blushing slightly as she looked away. "It was kind of cool to fight alongside him. But he's nowhere near as good as you" she added, leaning in for a kiss. Which Leo gladly granted her.  
"Get a room" said Damon from the doorway, the other three Rangers behind him.  
"I believe we already had one" said Karone looking over at him and grinning with Leo smiling behind her.  
"Ye well, Leo's other friends would like to see him now" said Damon pointing to himself and the others.  
"I don't know" said Leo unsure, "Without a kiss every minute I might die" joked Leo smiling at Karone who smiled back.  
"I'm going to check on a few things. Make sure Damon has actually fixed my ship" said Karone grinning as she walked past her friends.  
"I fixed it... at least I think I did" said Damon unsure that he'd done everything as he and the other surrounded Leo to chat. Karone could hear them laughing as she walked away from the room, but she had been look for something ever since they started repairs. An old friend of the previous Power Rangers and herself. She walked into the small dimly lit storage room, which was mostly filled with barrels. Karone wasn't entirely sure what was in the barrels, they had been there since before Andros had defeated Astronema, but in the corner of the room she spotted something. A tilted golden head, covered in dust. Moving aside the barrels that surrounded the robot Karone could now see the whole thing, his faded red body and rusting gold plates, it was obvious who it was.  
"Oh Alpha" said Karone as she wiped off some of the dust from his head. He'd clearly been back here for a while and hadn't been turned on since the Space Rangers and herself had been travelling around. "Poor thing. Let's see if Damon will give me a hand fixing you, once I've cleaned you up a bit" she said smiling at the robot, knowing full well she was talking to herself. She dashed out the room to get some soapy water and a sponge and got to work cleaning her old friend. "Don't worry, we'll have you good as new in no time" said Karone as she rubbed the robots arm with the wet sponge. It would be nice to have another friendly face around the Mega Ship.

 _Tenth Chapter shout out!  
This is a shout out to the "Power Rangers - Astronema/Karone's Journey" video I found on YouTube months back. I literally watch it every time I upload or start writing. The video is by 'shawrez' and I recommend you give it a watch especially if you are a Karone fan. __J_


	11. Alpha Flight

**Chapter 11: Alpha Flight**

"Aye-yi-yi" said Alpha aloud as his vision was turned on for the first time in months, the red lights at the front of his golden disk shaped head coming to life. He looked from side to side but couldn't seem to move.  
"Alpha" said a familiar voice as two people stood up in front of him.  
"Karone, is that you?" asked Alpha looking at the girl in front of him.  
"It's me Alpha" said Karone smiling, "And this is Damon, he's helping me to fix you" she said gesturing two the man next to her.  
"More like you're helping me to fix him" said Damon grinning at the girl beside him. "Nice to meet you Alpha" said Damon holding out his hand to shake, Alpha did so as he responded.  
"I'm pleased to meet you too Damon" said Alpha.  
"So how you feeling" asked Damon looking Alpha up and down.  
"I can't seem to move my legs, though everything else feels fine" admitted Alpha looking down.  
"I'll get to work on that. Karone pass me that-" he stopped talking when he looked over to see that his friend had vanished. "Karone... Where'd she go Alpha?" asked Damon as he took the tool he need and set to work on Alpha's legs.  
"I'm not sure Damon. Karone can be awfully sneaky" pointed out Alpha.  
"Like a ninja at times" remarked Damon as he continued fixing Alpha's legs.  
Karone had left to go and check in on Leo, who after three days of being stuck in the medical wing was finally getting released. Kendrix had held him captive having to actually strap him down in order to prevent him from leaving. But his wounds had healed quickly and according to Kendrix he seemed to be back to normal physical condition, most likely his accelerated recovery was because of his Ranger powers. Karone had promised to be there when Kendrix realised him and then take him out for lunch, but she wanted him and the others to meet Alpha first.  
Walking into the room she saw Leo still strapped to the table with Kendrix looking at a monitor that had wires coming out and going into Leo's arm.  
"What's she doing?" asked Karone as she stopped by Leo's side, nodding towards Kendrix.  
"She's trying to find a reason to keep me strapped to this bed" said Leo glaring at Kendrix.  
"I'm just not sure that it's in your best interest to be let out yet" said Kendrix looking over to him concerned.  
"But I'm fine. I'm fine, a hundred times I'M FINE. Tell her Karone" said Leo looking to his girlfriend for help.  
"I'll be with him for the rest of the day Kendrix. If he shows any sign of pain I'll drag him back to you" said Karone smiling down at Leo who didn't look to happy with her response.  
"Fine, but don't overdo it" said Kendrix, in a mother like fashion to as she pulled out the wires connecting to Leo. Undoing the straps around Leo, the second he was free he made a run for it.  
"Leo!" shouted Kendrix after him but he was already gone, leaving an angry Kendrix and laughing Karone.  
"Relax Kendrix. I'll keep my eyes on him" said Karone walking out and down the corridor which Leo had taken. She found Leo hiding behind the corner of the corridor, crouched against the wall.  
"It's alright, she's not following" said Karone with her hands on hips as she looked down at her boyfriend, currently looking rather pathetic.  
"You sure" said Leo peering around the corn to make sure.  
"I'm sure" said Karone rolling her eyes, before Leo got up.  
"Right, so back to work then" said Leo.  
"Work?" said Karone puzzled by his answer.  
"Yeah, I've missed the nursery" said Leo grinning childishly.  
"You mean you've missed mucking around with the kids all day" said Karone grinning back at him, knowing that Leo enjoyed his job as it suited his mental state. Karone had always thought of Leo as a child stuck inside an adult's body. Not that she cared, if anything it was one of the things that drew her to him being a child at heart also.  
"You got me" said Leo holding his hands up in surrender, "So we going or what?"  
"Yes, but first I want to show you something" taking Leo's hand she led him back down the corridor to the medical wing. She called for Kendrix to follow, which made Leo turn to run but Karone had a tight grip on his hand so he didn't get far. She then collected Kai and Maya from the bridge and led them all down to where she and Damon had been fixing Alpha. "Guys allow me to introduce you to Alpha" said Karone as she pressed the button to open the door and reviled Damon standing next to a full functioning Alpha.  
"Hello friends" said Alpha holding out his arms as if to hug.  
"Whoa!" said Maya in amazement as she stepped forwards and pocked the metal robot, astonished as she'd never seen anything like this before in her life.  
"Where have you been hiding this?" asked Kai inspecting the robot with Kendrix.  
"I found him in one of the rear storage rooms behind some barrels. This was the robot that travelled around with me and Andros. He's also helped every Power Ranger since the original ones" explained Karone as she hugged her robot friend.  
"Should we introduce ourselves?" suggested Kendrix to her friends.  
"Of course, I'm Kai" he said giving the robot a friendly shake of the hand. "That's Kendrix. Leo, and Maya" said Kai pointing out the others to Alpha.  
"A pleasure to meet you all" said Alpha as he hugged Leo and Maya quickly followed by Kai and Kendrix. As the others marvelled over Alpha, Karone took Leo by the hand and led him out the room.  
"Right, let's go to work but you still owe me dinner" said Karone hugging his arm and glaring up at him as they walked.  
"I thought you were paying" said Leo jokingly as they walked off and headed for the nursery.

Meanwhile the Scorpion Stinger was floating through space, not far behind Terra Venture but far enough back as not to be noticed by them. Trakeena was still in a bad mood with her father as she'd been grounded for her failure with the Lights of Orion, though her Father claimed it was for her own safety. As an extra precaution Scorpius had ordered two Sting Wingers to follow her wherever she went, to make sure she didn't leave the ship. Walking down the corridor Trakeena couldn't help but get annoyed with the two Stinger Wingers that had been at her side for nearly a week now. They followed her everywhere.  
"Will you two please just leave me Alone!" shouted Trakeena turning to the two Sting Wingers. They jumped slightly but didn't dare move; if they left Trakeena for even a second then they'd have to deal with the wrath of Scorpius and that would the end of them. They'd gotten used to Trakeena's constant yelling at them, and although it still scared them when she did, they had come to stop fearing her. This was what Trakeena hated most about her punishment. She was losing her credibility; even when passing Sting Wingers they would laugh and slyly point at her. Whispering about Scorpius' little princess that was just a weak little girl. She couldn't take it much longer.  
"Father!" She shouted walking into the throne room with her two Sting Winger guards right on her tail. Scorpius was seated on his throne as always and had been trying to think of a way to find the Lights of Orion, but when his daughter walked in his thoughts had vanished and he turned to her.  
"What is it my princess?" asked Scorpius in his sincere nice voice as he looked to his angry daughter.  
"Don't 'Princess' me" snarled Trakeena at her father. "I want these two-" Trakeena said pointing back at the two bugs behind her, "- gone. I'm sick of them following me where ever I go"  
"Trakeena, they are here only to protect you" said her father, still maintaining his nice voice.  
"I don't need protection" snapped Trakeena as she turned and kicked one of her guards in the chest, sending them into the wall. "I can take care of myself" she finished, turning back to her father.  
"It doesn't matter, those guards stay with you" ordered Scorpius as the guard Trakeena had kicked slowly got to his feet and joined his partner behind Trakeena, holding his chest in pain.  
"Stop treating me like a child!" shouted Trakeena. "If I'm supposed to rule when you're gone then I need to fight, so let me!"  
"Enough!" snapped Scorpius; his nice voice gone and replaced with his rage fuelled one. "You while not fight the Rangers!" he stopped after his outburst and gathered his thoughts. "But I will allow you to pick an alien to fight for you, and if he defeats the Rangers then I'll let you roam the ship without guards" said Scorpius firmly to which Trakeena folded her arms and pondered, considering her options.  
"Fine" she said, quickly coming to the decision that it was going to be the only way she could prove herself to her father, and to get the guards off her back. She turned on her heels to leave and then bumped into the guard she'd kicked before.  
"Get out of the way" she snarled as she threw him aside and power walked out, with one guard following in powerful strides and the other in a crouched limp. Trakeena had just the alien to take on the Rangers, having thought of it while trapped on the ship she'd found the perfect alien to take on the Rangers. The only reason she hadn't told her father or Furio was because she wanted the glory if he defeated the Rangers, not her father or Furio. She would prove to them both that she was more than capable of being one of her father's Generals and the ruler of the galaxy.

After finishing their work for the day, Leo and Karone had left to go for their meal but were stopped by one of the children they looked after regularly. He rushed up to Leo holding in his hand a piece of folded paper.  
"Here you go Leo" said the boy in his young high pitched voice, holding out the card. Leo smiled at the boy as he took the card and opened it up.  
"To Leo, Hope you get better soon and come back to work soon. We miss you. From... All of you" Leo said aloud, not prepared to stand and list all the scribbled names on the card. "Thank you Harry" said Leo giving the kid a hug and then ruffling his hair as he ran back over to his mother who was smiling at him proudly before taking his hand and walking away. Waving to the boy as he walked away Karone took the card from Leo and looked it over, she frowned as she read the card.  
"It's missing something" she said pointing to the bottom of the page.  
"What?" asked Leo looking at where her finger was pointing; it was right next to the large area of scribbled names in the bottom right hand corner. "What's it missing?" Leo repeated turning to Karone frowning himself, now with confusion.  
"A kiss" said Karone as she kissed him on the lips and leaned back grinning.  
"Don't I owe you a lunch" said Leo in a half dreamy state, surprised by the kiss.  
"You do actually" said Karone pulling him by the hand towards a nearby cafe where the two sat down. Relaxing in their chairs, Leo asked the waiter to bring them two glasses of juice to drink while they looked over the menu.  
"Feeling better?" said Karone looking at Leo.  
"After being chased by those kids, I feel like I could take on Scorpius all by myself" said Leo with a confident smile.  
"One step at a time cowboy" said Karone a little concern in her voice. "So, let's talk about us" she said smiling uneasily at Leo.  
"Your not breaking up with me are?" asked Leo in a panic.  
"No-no-no of course not. You know who I feel about you" said Karone putting her hand on his to reassure him. "I just want to talk about where we're going" said Karone with a kind smile.  
"Oh, ok. You had me worried there for a moment" said Leo with a hand over his heart, feeling more relief than he carried to admit to his girlfriend.  
"I just want to see if you're ready for the next part is all" said Karone her lips folding over on each other as she waited for Leo to respond. Leo thought for a moment, choosing his words carefully as not to say something wrong and upset Karone.  
"Do you mean-" but before he could finish his question the two of them heard several screams from down the street and quickly kicked back their chairs and ran towards the screaming. Pushing past the people that were running the other way from them, they found the source of the screaming. A little girl being attacked by a humanoid alien with wasp like features. He had the bug eyed head of a wasp but with large mouth, skinny thing black body and two stinger arms with small three fingered hands under nether the large black bladed stinger. As for his legs they looked like twigs with two toes, but it also had four large wings coming out of it back that swung from side to side in the wind.  
"Shut up you little brat" demanded the alien as it backed the girl up against the wall and got ready to strike. But before it could attack Leo flipped through the air and kicked the alien away from the girl while Karone rushed to her side.  
"You ok?" asked Karone holding the little girl in her hands. She nodded quickly, panicked, with tears coming down her face as she hugged herself. "Good, now go and hide" ordered Karone letting the girl go and watching her run off, before turning to face the new alien. "Who are you?" asked Karone standing next to Leo.  
"I'm Waspord and I'm here to-" but Leo cut him off before he could finish his speech.  
"Yeah-yeah. We've heard it before. Sent here to destroy us for Scorpius or Furio, look just do yourself a favour and give up now" said Leo confidently.  
"Guys, we've got a... wasp thing here" said Karone into her morpher.  
"We're on our way" said Damon, before Karone lowered her morpher, hands at her side like Leo now.  
"I'm not a wasp. I'm Waspord" he said feeling insulted by Karone's description of him.  
"Sorry all I heard there was wasp" said Karone with a cheeky grin, but this time the monster didn't just moan about her word choice. He shot out green blots of energy that the two Rangers had to back flip to avoid. Landing on one foot and knee, the two Rangers got back up and were ready to morph.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced Leo.  
"Phoenix Power!" announced Karone and the two morphed into their red and purple suits before pulling out their sabers. Waspord wasn't intimated by the Rangers' impressive flashes of red and purple and went in for another attack. This time however when he shot the green energy blots the two Rangers deflected the blasts with their sabers before lunging forwards and swinging at the alien. But the alien easily blocked before the attack with one stinger each and then pushed of their sabers before slashing at them both and charging past, sparks flying form each hit he made. Stumbling backwards the two didn't have a chance to react to the third pair of energy blots that Waspord lunched at them. The blasts connected and sent the two Rangers flying before hitting the ground and rolling.  
"You ok Karone?" asked Leo as he got up, leaning on his saber as he pushed himself up.  
"I'm good. You?" asked Karone also getting up, but without the assistance of her saber.  
"After what I've been through already, I think I'll be fine" joked Leo standing up ready to continue the fight.  
"And here I thought this would be hard" said a confident Waspord as he charged at the two. This time it was them who deflected the attack but both were still getting pushed back by the monster. "I that all you got, I was promised a challenge" mocked the alien as he pushed the Rangers back against the wall, pinning them down with his stingers. The Rangers sabers now pressing against their own chests without the power to match the alien's strength.  
"These guys really like to talk don't they" pointed out Leo, earning him a mild laugh from Karone.  
"You said it. They're not the brightest either" she added.  
"Says the girl trapped against the wall" retorted Waspord.  
"No. Says the girl who's been distracting you while her friends get behind" Karone said grinning behind her visor.  
"What?!" explained the alien looking over his shoulder to see that the other four Rangers were behind him with golden rocket launchers hanging on their shoulders, aiming at Waspord.  
"Quasar Launchers fire!" ordered Damon and the four fired their large weapons and blasted the alien allowing Leo and Karone to regroup with their team mates.  
"Nice toys" said Leo admiring the Rangers' new weapon.  
"Made them myself" said Damon as he patted his Quasar Launcher.  
"When?" asked Karone.  
"Started on them before you asked me to help with the Mega Ship and Alpha" said Damon. "They also double up as bow staffs" he pointed out as he twirled it around his shoulder and the middle of the launcher parted reviling a bar for Damon to hold onto so that he could use it as a bow staff.  
"Awesome" said Leo as the others transformed their weapons only for them then to fade away followed quickly by their suits.  
"Damon what just happened?" asked Kai looking at his hands.  
"Yeah... I may not have worked out all the bugs" said Damon smiling nervously.  
"Now it's my turn" said Waspord aiming his hands at the Rangers.  
"Get back!" shouted Leo as he and Karone spread themselves out in front of the defenceless demorphed Rangers and took the blast that knocked them down.  
"You guys ok?" asked Maya who helped the two up.  
"Been better" admitted Karone.  
"Can you guys morph?" asked Leo.  
"Lets hope so" said Damon, nodding to Kai from him to lead them in.  
"Ready?" asked Kai.  
"Ready" responded the none morphed Rangers.  
"Go, Galactic!" announced the four Ranger who then transformed back into their colourful suits.  
"Right, let's take this guy down" said Kai more confident now that he was back in his Ranger suit. Pulling out their sabers, the six Rangers charged at the alien. However just before they could strike the alien's wings picked up in speed and suddenly Waspord was near ten meters above them, laughing at the Rangers who could no longer get him.  
"Is that cheating?" asked Damon tilting his head as he looked up at the alien high above him.  
"Move!" ordered Kendrix who noticed that the alien was about to rain fire on them and the Rangers managed to dive out the way as Waspord fired a barrage of green energy bolts directly down. The Rangers scattered hiding behind cars and corners of buildings to avoid the attacks from above.  
"How are we supposed to fight this guy?" asked Maya as she leaned out from behind the corner to see a bolt of energy coming at her. She swung back around the corner and narrowly dodged the attack before looking to Kendrix who was ahead of her, using a car as cover.  
"I don't know" answered Kendrix, staying in cover.  
"We could use the Quasar Launchers" suggested Leo, hiding behind a car with Karone.  
"We might lose our powers again and then we're finished" pointed out Damon.  
"Well we have to do something" said Kai irritated by the lack of action against the flying bug. Karone, looking up, saw that Waspord had his back turned to her and threw two Phoenix feathers at him. But he easily dodged them, almost unaware that he had, before returning fire and nailing Karone with a shot to the chest. She rolled across the ground and then rolled again to avoid the next attack, taking cover behind another car.  
"As long as he's in the air we don't stand a chance" said Karone staying put behind her car.  
"Then we'll have to bring him down to our level" said Kai was readying himself to attack. However before he got a chance Waspord, flew higher into the sky and vanished into the city's skyline.  
"Where's he going?" asked Maya as the Rangers regrouped, coming out of cover.  
"Good question?" said Kendrix, looking in the direction Waspord had flown of in.  
"Either way we're going to need to come up with a plan to take him on" said Kai.  
"We can't just let him go though" pointed out Karone.  
"It's that or get knocked down again" said Kai turning to her. "And I'd rather find away to defeat this guy before he hurts anyone else" added Kai.  
"But Karone's right. We can't just let him roam around" pointed out Damon.  
"Alright. You and Maya go after him but don't engage" ordered Kai.  
"Just make sure he doesn't hurt anyone" added Leo as the Green and Yellow Rangers ran off after Waspord, while the others returned to the Mega Ship to come up with a new plan.

"It's working!" Furio said in surprise as he watched the footage of the Rangers being defeated by Waspord. "Trakeena actually managed to find a monster that defeated the Rangers" said Furio turning from the screen to Scorpius who sat on his throne as always, watching also. He hadn't expected Trakeena to pick a monster so strong, or for that matter one that could actually take on the Rangers. She had chosen well and shown good leadership, despite her previous failures. But still he frowned at the idea of letting her out in the field to fight the Rangers, or anyone for that matter. Until she entered the cocoon, in his eyes she would still be his little girl that didn't know the difference between a sword and a spear.  
"Scorpius, should I send Sting Wingers down to assist?" asked Furio, brining Scorpius out of his thoughts.  
"Yes Furio, and bring Trakeena here. She should witness the moment when the Rangers are destroyed. Then I can watch as she enters the cocoon and takes on her true form" he said with an evil look in his eyes.  
"Of course Scorpius" said Furio bowing humbly before existing, neither of them aware that Trakeena had been listening to the conversation from the behind the wall. Her heightened hearing had allowed her to hear through the wall and pick up every word they'd said.  
She'd managed to ditch her guards a while ago, destroying them with ease; she knew her father wouldn't find out for a while. But now that Furio was looking for her she'd have to act fast. She now knew that her father was going to put her in the cocoon, which would transform her into her bug queen form. Only Trakeena wasn't too keen on that, she liked the way she looked and had never liked the look of her father never mind wanting to become just like him.  
"I've got to get off this ship" she muttered to herself as she turned to leave. But how would she get off the ship? Taking a ship wouldn't get her far and if Terra Venture spotted her she'd likely be blown out the sky. She'd need to use a teleport, but her father had taken that particular power from her on the chance that she might use it to leave the ship. It was her best chance of getting off the ship without being noticed, so she'd need to get it back in order to leave. But before she got off, Trakeena needed to get a few things. First her potion that she'd created to use against the Rangers, then her staff which Furio had taken and then her teleporting powers. Sighing she knew it was never going to be easy.  
She made her way back to her room, acting causal as not to arouse suspicion from the Sting Wingers that she passed on her way. Stopping at her door she heard Furio coming down the corridor towards her. She cursed, having no way to fight off Furio and nowhere to run. Without her staff she'd be defenceless against him and if she ran he'd hear her. Taking a gut decision she dived into her room, the door sliding close behind her, leaving a trail of green slim on the floor. She looked around for something, anything she could use to defend herself with against Furio who was now outside her door. She then spotted it on her potion stand, a sleeping potion and the other she'd made for the Ranger. Grabbing both she hid them behind her back as the door slide open and Furio stepped in. Examining the room he frowned.  
"Where are your guards?" asked Furio, noting they were not with her.  
"Thought they were outside" said Trakeena standing on her tip toes to look over Furio's shoulder, pretending to look with an innocent smile.  
"Well there not" said Furio unhappily as he turned. "They'll suffer for this" he said glaring at the door, unaware of Trakeena who'd pulled out the sleeping potion and was ready to strike. As Furio turned back around Trakeena hit him in the face with the potion. The glass shattering in his face as he dropped to the ground out cold, the blue liquid dripping from his face.  
She hadn't used it in the conventional sense were the subject would drink it and then fall asleep but it had worked. She grinned as she put her hand to Furio's chest and then smiled as red energy passed from him and into her, changing green as it entered her.  
"Thanks Furio" said Trakeena getting back up before heading for Fruio's room where her staff was. She now had all she needed to get off the ship and destroy the Rangers herself. Then her father might finally understand her power.  
Taking her staff, she vanished in a green flash grinning when she appeared in one of the side streets of the main dome on Terra Venture. She put away her staff and then transformed out of her bug armour and into an all red dress with high red heels and gold sunglasses which resting on her head. Grinning she existed the alley, men staring at her as she walked by. _Why would she want to give up her good looks?_ She thought to herself as she walked past two men whose jaws dropped at the sight of her. Passing them she blew a kiss before turning back to her walking direction and pulling down her sunglasses over her eyes.

"So what are we going to do?" asked Karone as the four demorphed Rangers walked onto the bridge of the Mega Ship.  
"We could use the Galactabeasts to swat him like a fly" suggest Leo with a thin smile but Kai just shook his head in disagreement.  
"They could cause too much damage to the city. Same goes for the Mega Ship, it's too big to be flying it around the city" he pointed out.  
"What we need is away to get up in the sky. If we can't bring him to us then we go to him" said Kendrix.  
"Good idea, shame none of us can fly" said Leo with a smirk on his face.  
"Perhaps we could find away to bring him down, stop him from flying" suggested Karone.  
"If we stopped his wings from moving then that'd do it, they are the source of his flight" pointed out Kai, "But how would we be able to stop him from using them?"  
"Cut them off" said Karone.  
"Not the best plan and if he's up in the air so it's still the same problem, how do we get to him" commented Kendrix.  
"Perhaps I can help" said Alpha who had suddenly appeared on the bridge.  
"Alpha, how could you help?" asked Karone her eye brows raised.  
"Well, not me per say. But rather what I found" said Alpha as he turned and began to walk out, gesturing for the others to follow him which they did. "The Space Rangers used to have Galaxy Gliders, which allowed them to travel through space" Alpha began to explain as they walked.  
"Do you still have them?" asked Leo hopefully.  
"No. We lost them surfing to close to a black hole" said Karone remembering the unpleasant day when she'd nearly been sucked into the hole in space with the Galaxy Gliders. If Zane hadn't picked her and the other Space Rangers up then they would have been gone forever.  
"Yes we did but before I was turned off I was working on these" said Alpha as he led the Rangers into the small cargo hold at the back of the ship. Inside the Rangers saw five multi coloured aircraft, each with one seat inside for the pilot. They reminded Karone of bumper cars in some ways, mostly from the shape of the craft. "These are the Jet Jammers" said Alpha passing his hand over the Jet Jammers. "They are built for short space flights but will be very useful for fighting the likes of Waspord as they have built in lasers" Alpha said as Leo, Kai and Kendrix examined their individual Jet Jammers, matching the colour of their suits.  
"But Alpha there's six of us and only five Jet Jammers" pointed out Karone looking to her robotic friend.  
"I have something special for you Karone" said Alpha leading her over to the corner of the room to a table with a large old dusty blanket of it. In one fluid movement Alpha managed to pull off the blanket and reviled what was under nether, a purple glider shaped in the form of a Phoenix. It's head shaped in the form of a birds with large purple wings for Karone to stand on as well as bushy tail that spread out at the back.  
"WHOA!" said Karone astonished as she stroked her new glider.  
"It's the Phoenix Glider. Andros and Zane had been working on it before they decided to settle back down on KO-35 with you" explained Alpha. "Rather funny how it now matches your Ranger colour isn't it?"  
"Yeah. It is" said Karone, still admiring her new glider with a smile.  
"Well, what are we waiting for?" said Leo as he jumped into his Jet Jammer and starting up the engine, watching as it began to hover above the ground. "Come on guys" said Leo smiling back at them. Kai and Kendrix didn't waste any time and jumped into their Jet Jammers while Karone jumped aboard her Phoenix Glider which activated upon her touch.  
"This is so COOL" she said as her Phoenix glider began to twirl around.  
"There'll be time to play later Karone" said Kai in his leader like tone, to which Karone got serious and nodded to him.  
"Good luck Rangers" said Alpha as he opened up the cargo hold door allow the Rangers to fly out.  
"Thanks Alpha" said Karone as she followed her friends out the ship and towards the space outside Terra Venture.  
"Alright. Go, Galactic!" announced Leo followed by Kai and Kendrix.  
"Phoenix Power!" announced Karone who then morphed with them and the four flew out into space, before circling back and heading for Terra Venture's main dome.

In the main dome, Damon and Maya weren't having as good a time as the others. They were in the process of being chased by Waspord and a herd of Sting Wingers. They were still morphed but that wasn't going to help them against the flying bugs that were now hunting them.  
"Since when could Sting Wingers fly?" asked Damon as the two Rangers jumped over a bench and then rolled to avoid the laser fire that was being sent their way.  
"Always" answered Maya, looking over her shoulder to see that they were still shooting at them.  
"I really hope the others come up with a plan soon otherwise we're not going to be around to see it work" said Damon as the two turned a corner, the swarm still hot on their tail.  
"Use your Transdagger" ordered Maya to which Damon jumped ahead and flipped around to face the swarm and fire his Transdagger, which had transformed into its blaster mode. He managed to hit two of the Sting Wingers, but then had to continue running with Maya or be crushed by the masses.  
"Fat lot of good that did" he said running.  
"You got two of them" pointed out Maya optimistically.  
"Yeah, but at that rate they'll get us before I've even shot down a tenth of them" said Damon as they ducked to avoid more laser fire from overhead before continuing to run. Then they skidded to a stop as their friends flew over head in small ships and shot down several of the Sting Wingers.  
"Where did they come from?" asked Maya as he and Damon watched the four other Rangers flying through the air fighting off the mob of Sting Wingers. They were twirling through the air and blasting the ugly monsters as they flew by, they made it look easy.  
"What is this?!" shouted Waspord in shock and horror as he watched the Sting Wingers drop to the ground one by one. "Where in the galaxy did they get those things" he moaned aloud as Kendrix flew past him causing him to spin around uncontrollably and fall to the ground. "Going to feel that tomorrow" said Waspord getting up holding his head with spinning eyes. As the world stopped spinning in his head he spotted Karone on her Phoenix Glider descending to his level, the glider hovering just above the ground.  
"Miss us?" asked Karone, grinning at the alien who snarled back at her angrily.  
"If you think some new toys will help you beat me, then you're sadly mistaken" said Waspord as he took flight over Karone, who was right behind him. He flew in between buildings trying to lose the girl following him but no matter what he did he couldn't lose her. In his angered state he shot back at her and Karone was forced to swerve to the side to avoid the energy blasts. Getting her balance back she had now lost sight of Waspord.  
"Where's Waspord?" asked Kendrix who pulled up beside Karone in her Jet Jammer.  
"I don't know. I was following him until-" Karone stopped talking when she spotted him above flying straight towards them. "Move!" she ordered sliding her glider across the air and out the way, but Kendrix wasn't as fast and Waspord managed to grab hold of her and her Jet Jammer.  
"Get off!" yelled Kendrix as she tried to shake the large bug from her air craft, but he had to good a hold in the Jet Jammer. He then reached up and with one hard swing knocked Kendrix aside and watched her roll out of the Jet Jammer. Screaming as she fell through the air Karone had to act quickly to save her friend and pointed her glider downwards, after Kendrix.  
"Kendrix!" screamed Kai in horror and panic from above as Karone dove down after her friend reaching out her hand. Kendrix spotted Karone above and reached up for her hand, but it was out of reach and the ground was coming up fast. Accelerating in speed Karone managed to reach Kendrix's finger tips but it still wasn't enough to get a good hold. Thinking on her feet, Karone jumped from her glider and grabbed hold of Kendrix cuddling her in her own arms as she hit the ground with a hard thud. Realising the fall hadn't felt right Karone looked down to see that she was still in the air, only on top of Leo's Jet Jammer.  
"Need a lift?" asked Leo as the two girls looked to him, smiling with relief behind their visors.  
"Thanks Leo" said Kendrix gratefully giving him a hug.  
"Took you long enough" said Karone in her usual cheeky manor with a grin.  
"I'll try to be quicker next time then" said Leo grinning back at her.  
"Rats" said Waspord from above, watching Leo fly off with the two Rangers safe in hand.  
"Excuse me!" shouted Kai as he rammed his Jet Jammer into the back of Waspord and fired into his back. The alien screamed as he dropped in the air before regaining control of his flight, his wings now scorched by the laser blasts that Kai had shot him with.  
"You'll pay for that!" shouted Waspord with a shaking fist towards Kai as he flew over head.  
"How about an I.O.U?" asked Kendrix suddenly. Now looking ahead, Wasprod could see that Leo was flying right towards him with the Pink and Purple Rangers stood at the front of his Jet Jammer with sabers at the ready. He tried to duck under the Jet Jammer, and succeeded, but Karone and Kendirx jumped off and tackled the alien to the ground.  
Landing on his back, there was a sharp sound of breaking bone that followed as Karone and Kendrix jumped off of Waspord and retread back to Damon and Maya. Getting to his feet, Waspord tried to take flight again but found he couldn't. Looking back he now saw that his wings were bent in several places and when he tried to move them he noticed they only moved slightly, like a leaf when a genital wind passes by.  
"What have you done to my precious wings?" screamed Waspord as his head swung from one side to the other, looking over his shoulder at his precious wings.  
"Looks like you won't be flying anytime soon" joked Maya as she and the other readied their Quasar Sabers for battle against the weakened Waspord. Screaming as they charged, Kendrix led with the first attack slashing upwards at angle across the alien's chest. She then ran past him allowing Karone to come in with a downwards cut that slashed across the other side of Waspord's chest. As she rolled out away she caught a glimpse of Maya and Damon jumping towards the monster and attacking from above. The two hit their sabers hard against Waspord, forcing him to stumble back into Karone and Kendrix who then tripped him up with a slash to his legs.  
As the four Rangers congratulated themselves on a job well done, Waspord let lose several blasts of energy which hit the four Rangers and knocked them over with sparks flashing off them as they dropped.  
"Man, doesn't this guy give up?" moaned Damon as he push himself up in time with the other Rangers, looking ahead at Waspord who'd also gotten back up.  
"I was saving this for later-" said Waspord as he produced the usual bottle of green liquid that nearly all of Scorpius' monsters carried. "-but you've forced me to waist it on you!" he continued angrily before downing the drink and dropping the glass bottle that smashed against the ground. The Rangers ran back as Waspord grew to the height of the surrounding buildings and began unleashing his wrath on the city.  
"That could be a problem" said Leo as he and Kai flew past the huge Waspord that was destroying a nearby building. The two Rangers were flying from behind the alien and could see that his wings had started to repair, the bends now straightening out and healing.  
"We've got to stop him before his wings are fixed otherwise we may never be able to defeat him" said Kai in alarm as he led the way up the monster's back with Leo close behind. The two fired at the repairing wings in hope of further damaging them, but all it seemed to do was notify Waspord to their location. Turning swiftly he knocked the two Jet Jammers and the two went flying through the air before crashing into the ground. Luckily they hadn't landed on their heads and had landed right side up, however the two Jet Jammers had broken controls, panels hanging off the sides with wires sticking out all over and smock coming out the back.  
The two Rangers had just finished climbing out when the other four arrived to help them.  
"Are you guys ok?" asked Kendrix, who ran straight to Kai while Karone ran to Leo.  
"We're fine, but the Jet Jammers are wrecked" said Kai pointing to his Jet Jammer that let out a violent flash of electricity followed by more smoke.  
"We'll have to deal with that later, right now we've one Big problem" said Damon looking up to the sky were Waspord was attacking the city with his stingers.  
"We have to finish him now before his wings can heal. If he regains his ability to fly then we're through" said Leo in a worried tone.  
"Don't worry. With the combined power of the Galaxy Megazord and the Astro Megazord we'll have more than enough power to take him down" said Karone reassuringly.  
"Are you sure the Astro Megazord is ready to work?" asked Maya, concern in her voice.  
"It should be fine, as long as we finish it quickly" said Damon with an agreeing nod to Karone.  
"Let's do it then" said Leo as he and the others formed a horizontal line. "Galactabeasts, raise and transform!" commanded Leo as he and the other prime Rangers held up their Transdaggers. From out of nowhere the five huge animals came into the city and combined to form the Galaxy Megazord, the Rangers jumping inside the huge robot to control it as a team.  
Meanwhile Karone used her morpher to bring the Astro shuttle and Mega ship to her before transforming them into the Astro Megazord. She hoped aboard into her one manned control room and turned on the communication system so she could talk to the Rangers and Alpha who was in the heart of the Astro Megazord.  
"Can you guys hear me?" asked Karone.  
"We hear you Karone" said Damon from inside the Galaxy Megazord. Karone then manoeuvred the Astro Megazord next to the Galaxy Megazord as both pulled out their swords and readied themselves to fight Waspord, who was straight ahead.  
"You stupid Rangers think you can beat me!" shouted Waspord as he aimed his stingers and let loose several blast that hit the two Megazords. Inside the gigantic robots the Rangers shook violently from left to right as sparks flew around inside their control rooms.  
"Time for this guy to have a taste of his own medicine" said Kendrix as the Galaxy Megazord pulled the Condor from its back and aimed it at Waspord, its mouth open.  
"Take this! Condor Cannon Fire!" shouted Leo and the green bird fired from its beck sending out a ball of energy. But at the last second Waspord managed to fly up and dodge the blast, his wings having fully healed.  
"What?!" exclaimed Damon, amazed that the monster had dodged their attack.  
"How could his wings have healed so fast?" asked a stunned Kai.  
"Now what are we going to do?" asked Maya.  
"Look out!" shouted Karone over the communication line as Waspord sent more energy blasts their way. The two Megazords rolled aside and ran around as Waspord rained down on them from above.  
"I'm getting a sense of déjà vu t over here" said Damon as the Galaxy Megazord ran around with Waspord chasing it.  
"I've got an idea" announced Leo as they ran.  
"Well don't keep us waiting, what is it?" asked Maya.  
"If Karone can get ahead of us then she can throw us up into the air and we'd be able to attack Waspord" said Leo.  
"Sounds good to me" said Karone from her Megazord.  
"Better than getting shot at" added Damon.  
"Let's do it then" finished Kai as he watched Karone run a head and drop down on one knee. Clasping the Astro Megazord's hands together for the Galaxy Megazord to step onto and then thrust it up into the air.  
"Ready" said Karone over the communications line, as she stared straight ahead waiting for her moment. The Astro Megazord nodded to the Galaxy Megazord and the six were ready to attack, with Waspord still chasing the Galaxy Megazord.  
"It ends here Rangers!" shouted Waspord continuing his laser fire.  
"You're right about that" said Kendrix as the Galaxy Megazord stepped onto the Astro Megazord's hands and was then thrown up into the air, spinning around to face Wasprod.  
"Oh NO! NO!" shouted Waspord who couldn't stop himself and went flying into the Galaxy Megazord's sword swing that caused him to crash down on the ground.  
"Now it's my turn" said Karone, "Astro Megazord saber slash!" she announced typing in a code with the sword starting to glow. She pushed the joy sticks forwards and pressed down on both the buttons. With that the engines at the back of the Megazord charged and fired out the back of the Megazord pushing it forwards at full force. Waspord had only time to get to his feet and shield his eyes as the Astro Megazord came flying at him, slashing him through the chest before he was destroyed.

From a nearby building roof top Trakeena gritted her teeth as she watched the Astro Megazord destroy her monster. But now that her monster had failed she had a chance to prove herself, prove that she could destroy the Rangers all by herself, with no need of a monster to do her dirty work.  
"Now it's my turn Rangers" snarled Trakeena turning on her heels and heading for the stairs.

Up on the Scorpion Stinger, things weren't looking good for Furio. Who was currently getting all kinds of things thrown at him, mainly Sting Wingers though. His timing couldn't have been worse in telling Scorpius that Trakeena had escaped, as Scorpius had just seen the Rangers destroy Waspord and was in a bad enough mood as was without this extra new.  
"How could she escape Furio?!" bellowed Scorpius as he picked up a nearby Sting Winger and throw him at Furio who managed to duck under the passing Sting Winger.  
"I'm sorry Scorpius. A thousand times I'm sorry. Please forgive me" said Furio kneeling down on both knees, hands together as he pleaded with his master.  
"Sorry won't bring my daughter back!" snapped Scorpius as he lashed out at Furio, two of his large strong tentacles latching around Furio's neck and choking him. Furio tried to speak but nothing came out.  
"You get my daughter back or I'll destroy you!" shouted Scorpius throwing Furio out the room and into the corridor wall.  
"Yes-yes-yes-yes my lord" said Furio in a panic as he ran from the sight of Scorpius. As he ran away he could hear the cries of Sting Winger that Scorpius had now turned his wrath on. _Better them than me_ Furio thought to himself as he moved through the ship, trying to think of a way to get Trakeena back onboard before Scorpius killed him.

Back on Terra Venture it was getting late and the Rangers had split off to head to their rooms, with the exception of Leo who'd decided to escort Karone home. Everyone knew that Karone didn't need an escort, but she still took Leo's arm when he offered it.  
"It's not been a bad day has it" said Karone as the two walked side by side, slowly towards Karone's apartment, looking up at the stars above. At night they turned off the holographic projection so that if you wanted you could look out into space, it defiantly made Karone feel in a romantic mood.  
"No it hasn't" agreed Leo smiling at her as the two walked in sync through a park that would led them to Karone's apartment.  
"You still feeling ok?" asked Karone.  
"I'm fine, promise" said Leo giving her a light peck on the cheek to reassure her.  
"If you say so" said Karone returning her gaze to the stars above. "It's romantic isn't it" she said, to which Leo to looked up, nodding in agreement.  
"It is" he said as they walked out of the park, then crossing the street and heading into the building that Karone lived in. Climbing up to the third floor the two stopped outside Karone's door, Karone leaning against her door with Leo opposite her staring into her eyes.  
"Want to come in?" asked Karone a light grin on her face.  
"I'd like to, but I'd better get back. Long day, need my rest" said Leo a soft smile spread across his face.  
"What if you stayed here, tonight" said Karone taking his hands in hers and pulling him slowly towards him.  
"You sure? I wouldn't want to over stay my welcome" said Leo concerned.  
"Trust me, you won't" said Karone typing in her code to the door and pulling Leo in as the door opened and closed behind them. Karone then spun him around as they approached her bed and pushed him down on it before crawling up beside him.  
"I just realised, this is the first time we've slept here" said Leo, looking at her slightly nervous.  
"I'm gain if you are" said Karone leaning in, her lips millimetres from his, as if she was reading his mind.  
"I'm not sure now's the best time" said Leo to which Karone leaned back.  
"Still hurting?" asked Karone smiling at him  
"Promise not to tell Kendrix" pleaded Leo with an worried look on his face.  
"Sure" she said with a peck on his cheek. She wasn't in a hurry and they had both agreed to only do it when they were both ready. "Just don't overdo it" said Karone as she rolled of her bed to get changed into her pyjamas.  
"I won't. I'm in no hurry to get back to nurse Kendrix" said Leo shivering slightly at the thought.  
After a moment Leo had stripped down to his red tank top and underwear, while Karone had on her normal light blue shorts and dark purple tank top pyjamas. Leo was already under the covers and Karone had now slid in next to him. "Night" she said giving him a kiss before turning off the lights. However, as she lay on her side she felt Leo roll over to her side and wrap his arm around her, putting his lips close to her ear.  
"I love you" he said, before putting his head back down on the pillow next to her. Karone could feel her heart racing slightly and was certain that her checks were blushing as she smiled in her sleep. He'd never told her that he loved her before.


	12. Worn Out

_First of I need to apologize for my absence recently. To be honest it is partly because I've been lazy and only casually working on this FanFiction. It wasn't fair to you guys and was stupid on my part. That being said I also have exams coming up, and I know it's not fair of me to ask, but until the end of May odds are that this story won't be getting much attention. Sorry in advance but my last exam is on the 23_ _rd_ _of May and after that I intent to power through with this story. I'll talk to you more at the end about where this story is going and what I plan to do next. Sorry again and I will try my best to make it up to you in the future._

 **Chapter 12: Worn Out**

Scorpius had just finished constructing the cocoon which would transform Trakeena into her bug form, now all that had to been done was for Trakeena to return. Soon his beautiful daughter would transform into her even more spectacular bug form which would grant her unimaginable power. But to his surprise Trakeena had not wanted to become a bug, she had fought against the idea ever since she had found out about it. For that reason he'd allowed her to live out part of her life in human form with the exception that when he instructed her to, she'd take on her true form. Only now she'd run of to Terra Venture and had been hiding out there for the last few days. Giving her a chance to return, he'd grown impatient and was now ready to send down Sting Wingers to retrieve his daughter.  
"Scorpius, the Sting Wingers are ready to deploy and begin their search of Terra Venture" said Furio walking into the throne room, admiring the white threaded cocoon in the centre of the room.  
"Excellent, return my daughter to me Furio and all past mistakes will be forgiven" said Scorpius as Furio nodded and turned to leave.

Maya slashed through several Sting Wingers, defending a group of civilians that had been attacked by them. She stood in her Ranger suit between the bugs and people who were running for cover while she took on the Stinger Wingers. She ducked under one swing and then leaned back to avoid another attack before slashing back and taking out one of the Stinger Wingers. She backed up while the two remaining Sting Wingers came at her. They slashed down, but Maya managed to cartwheel backwards to avoid the attack. She then jumped towards two bugs and slashed diagonally finishing them off.  
"This is Maya-" she said, speaking into her morpher, "- I've just finished off another group Sting Wingers" she informed the other five Rangers, who were scattered throughout the city.  
"Great work Maya" came Kai's voice through the morpher.  
"I'm picking up more readings at the park near twenty seventh" said Alpha from the Mega Ship who was working the scanners and helping the Rangers to find the groups of Stinger Wingers that had infested the city.  
"I've got it" said Karone, "I just finished off two groups down the street. I'll be there in a sec" said Karone who was running up the street, hopping the fence surrounding the park where she easily found the four Sting Wingers. But oddly enough they were searching through the bushes and looking underneath benches.  
"Can I help you?" asked Karone, making herself known to the Sting Wingers with her hands on her hips. "Looking for something?" she asked as the Sting Wingers rose up and got ready to fight, Karone in response drawing her saber. "You know this won't end well for you right?" said Karone sarcastically, grinning behind her visor. As a Sting Winger lunged at her she rolled aside, muttering "I guess not" as she got back up to face the four large bugs. She blocked attacks from two Sting Wingers, before flipping over and slashing down below her and taking out the two monsters. One of the last Sting Wingers fired some green lasers at her, which she easily dodged and then charged. She knocked aside the Sting Wingers hands so he couldn't fire at her again and then slashed it across the chest destroying it.  
With only one Sting Winger left, Karone took a casually stance and began twirling her sword around as she walked over to the last Sting Winger who looked at her in horror. "Come on, don't tell me you're scared of little old me" teased Karone as she suddenly swung forwards with her saber taking out the final Sting Winger.  
"This is Karone I've-" but she was cut off by a sudden shot of red energy that forced her to drop. As she rolled across the ground, she demorphed and dropped her saber a few feet away from herself as she came to a stop next to a park bench.  
"Fancy seeing you here Astronema" said Furio as he stepped out of the bushes sword in hand, which rested on his shoulder. Karone groaned as she looked up, rolling her eyes at Furio's remark and use of her other state of mind. Using the bench next to her, she pulled herself up and used her telekinesis to bring her saber to her hand. "I see you've been using you telekinesis a lot more" commented Furio taking his sword from his shoulder and holding it firmly at his side.  
"What do you want?" asked Karone, ignoring his statement.  
"Not that it's any of your business, but I'm looking for Trakeena" admitted Furio, to Karone's surprise.  
"Why, the princess of bugs decided to have a game of hide and seek?" joked Karone, but Furio didn't like her teasing and slashed out with his sword. Karone was only just able to block the attack and then duck under the other and finally flipping over Furio and his next attack. She landed firmly on the ground and swung behind her, hitting Furio backwards before running back to avoid his pathetic counter attack.  
Karone turned back to face her opponent, only to find Furio charging at her. She ducked under a swing of his sword before jumping over the next and while in the air she kicked back of Furio. He stumbled back while Karone once again landed firmly on the ground. Twirling her sword around in one full loop she charged and slashed down onto Furio who managed to block her attack. He countered and Karone blocked, the two classing swords. Suddenly there's a flash of purple in Karone's eyes that terrified Furio, but he hides it well and begins to taunt her.  
"She's still in there. No matter how hard you try she'll always be a part of you" snarled Furio as he pressed down with his sword but with no change on the battle.  
"Shut... Up..." said Karone in between deep breaths, trying not to give away to Furio's attack. They were evenly matched, if only she could morph then she'd be able to overpower him. Once again her eyes flared as she shot out a bubble of purple kinetic energy and sent Furio head over heels. "Wow..." murmured Karone as she shook her head, feeling a little dizzy as she watched Furio get back on his feet.  
"Your just lucky I've got other things to do" snapped Furio before vanishing in a flash of red.  
"Yeah... lucky" said Karone to herself before stumbling over to the nearby bench and slumping down, her saber leaning against the side of the bench. She let out a sigh before closing her eyes and taking in a deep relaxing breath of air.  
Her powers were still growing from mixing with the Phoenix's and she was starting to feel like she couldn't control it at times. She'd several unfortunate outbursts over the last few days, one resulting in her friends getting covered in food while having dinner. They'd all been eating pleasantly when suddenly her powers had unleashed a miniature whirlwind causing food to fly off the table and into their faces. She had her friends had laughed about it at the time but she was now starting to worry slightly.  
A sudden shake of her shoulder brought her out of her thoughts. Her eyes shot open and she grabbed her saber, jumping to her feet she swung with her saber. The saber on track to cut through the neck of her waker only to stop, her blade resting on her waker's shoulder, when she realised that it was Maya that was beside her.  
"Whoa!" said Maya jumping back with a delayed reaction not excepting the attack to come from her friend. Karone dropped her saber to her side and sighed with relief. She looked back up eyes full of fear at the thought of what she could have done to her friend.  
"What are you doing?" asked Karone catching her breath.  
"I came to check on you after you got cut off but you were asleep. Then I go to wake you and suddenly you've got your saber at my neck" explained Maya rubbing the spot of her neck where the blade had been moments ago. "You could have taken my head off" said Maya jokingly, but Karone could see the hint of fear in her friends eyes before she looked away.  
"Sorry. You caught me off guard and I'd just been fighting Furio, I thought you were him coming back for another fight" said Karone as her saber disappeared with a purple glow, which faded with the weapon. "Sorry" Karone repeated as she walked over to her friend and hugged her.  
"It's ok" said Maya accepting the hug and then turning, walking side by side with Karone out the park. "So how'd it go?" asked Maya as the two walked down the street.  
"The fight with Furio?" asked Karone, to which Maya nodded. "Pretty evenly matched, but I managed to overpower him" said Karone with a happy grin at the thought of beating Furio. "How about you and the Sting Wingers?" asked Karone.  
"Easy pickings" said Maya with a smile which Karone returned and the two continued on towards the Mega Ship. Regrouping with their friends after they'd spent the whole morning running through the city fighting off Sting Wingers.

"Why have you returned if you've not found my daughter?!" bellowed Scorpius as he lashed out with his tentacles slashing about as Furio backed away out of range. "Do you have a death wish Furio?" asked Scorpius.  
"No my lord. But-but-but Scorpius, the Rangers they-" replied Furio but Scorpius was only further angered by the mention of the Rangers.  
"I don't care about the Rangers! If they stand between you and finding my daughter then kill them. Just bring me my DAUGHTER!" shouted Scorpius to which Furio bowed and backed further out of the room, avoiding the tentacles lashing out towards him.  
"Yes-yes-yes my lord-it'll be done" said Furio as he ducked around the corner with one of Scorpius' tentacles only just missing him.  
He had to find Trakeena, quickly, with each second that passed Scorpius got more and more angry. But the Rangers insisted on getting in his way and would continue to slow his search for Trakeena. What he needed was a distraction while he searched the city, but most of his alien allies were starting to back away in fear of being sent after the Rangers. After all word had gotten around Scorpius' army about the undefeated Power Rangers and naturally most of them were not willing to go throw their lives away in a futile attempt to defeat them. At least he still had the Sting Wingers, but they were no match for the Rangers, just mindless drones that fought for them when ordered to.  
Shaking his head as he came to a conclusion, which he knew was futile he made his way to hanger where the next wave of Sting Wingers was waiting for him. He had decided to send them in by flight while taking a smaller group to search the domes. With the large wave attacking the city by flight that would hopefully keep the Rangers attention off him, allowing him time to search.

Back on Terra Venture Karone and Maya were just walking onto the bridge of the Mega Ship. Looking around the room they saw that Damon was sweating badly, Alpha standing next to him with a bottle of water while Damon drank from another. Looking over to the scanners they saw Kai was tensely looking for any more Sting Winger activity, while Leo and Kendrix sat across the room talking. Both had a towel over their shoulders and had changed since Karone had last seen them into work out cloths.  
"You guys ok?" asked Leo being the first to notice Karone and Maya.  
"Great, just a little hot" said Maya wiping her brow with the back of her hand and realising that she was sweating, Karone did the same and came to the same conclusion.  
"You two must have had quiet the work out" commented Kendrix.  
"Sting Wingers may be easy, but fighting wave after wave can really take it out of you" said Maya sitting down next to Kendrix while Karone stood in front of the three, hands on hips.  
"Any other towels lying around?" asked Karone looking around.  
"I'll get you some" said Alpha from behind her. As he went to leave, Damon snatched the bottle of water out his hand and threw the other towards Alpha who flimsily caught it.  
"Fill that up to please" said Damon before gulping down the second bottle of water. Karone smiled at her friend as she walked over to him, noticing the small puddle that had formed underneath him.  
"Is that your sweat?" asked Karone nodding towards the puddle. Damon looked down and shook his head, continuing to drink from the bottle.  
"Spilled some water" he said in between his forced breathing before sticking the bottle back in his mouth and swallowing. When he pulled out the bottle again, he sighed in relief and put the empty bottle on the control panel next to him. "I think I may need to work out more" joked Damon, laughing lightly at his own joke.  
"Leo can help you with that" said Karone looking over to him as he sat chatting with Kendrix and Maya. It was then Alpha returned with another two bottles of water in each hand and two towels over his shoulder, one purple the other yellow. Damon instantly snatched one of the bottle and began drinking again, Karone could still see the sweat forming on his face and dripping down.  
"Don't snatch Damon" said Alpha sourly as she handed Karone her purple towel.  
"Sorry" said Damon removing the bottle from his mouth for about a second before putting it back in. Karone laughed at her friends over reaction to the amount of work he'd done so far today. Then again they'd all been putting in over time this morning, fighting Sting Wingers all over the place. They were all tired and sweating from the hard work but Damon was always one to over react, though in this case Karone did feel like dropping on the floor. But she'd have to risk spending the rest of the day there if she did, feeling her legs about to give out under her, she wasn't sure if she'd be able to get back up.  
She wiped her brow with her clean towel before taking the other bottle from Alpha who then processed over to Maya and handed her the yellow towel. She took a gulp of her water and then held out the bottle to Damon who happily took it, having finished his third bottle, and drank away from it.  
"We've got more Sting Wingers" announced Kai suddenly sitting up in his chair as he typed away at the keyboard in front of the screen.  
"Are you kidding me" groaned Damon as he throw another empty bottle down.  
"There appears to be a large number of Sting Wingers approaching the city skyline" informed D.E.C.A, the red light in the camera flashing as she spoke.  
"Seriously, do we have to" moaned Damon, sensing everyone was ready to head out and face the new wave of Sting Wingers.  
"Yes Damon" said Maya who'd walked over and pulled him up off the control panel and was leading him towards the rear cargo hold that contained the Jet Jammers.  
"In all seriousness do you guys really need me, can't you handle this one without me?" asked Damon, trying to squirm out of his Ranger duties.  
"We could, but it never hurt to have backup" said Leo smiling smugly at him as he walked past Damon, patting him on the back.  
"Can't I be back up from here though?"  
"No Damon. And before you open your mouth again, your coming so shut it" said Maya sternly to which Damon remained quiet, now walking willingly without Maya's assistance.  
"Why are they sending so many Sting Wingers down though?" thought Kendrix aloud.  
"Furio said that they were looking for Trakeena" said Karone.  
"They must really want to find her" said Leo, "I mean just look at the amount of Sting Wingers we've taken out this morning. He must have sent down half his army by now"  
"You think she's gone rouge, turned against them?" asked Kendrix.  
"I doubt it. That woman's pure evil" said Karone.  
"I'm with Karone, there's no way she's turned good" agreed Kai. "But Kendrix might be right about her going against Scorpius perhaps"  
"Should we look for her?" asked Damon looking back at his friends.  
"We probably should. She might be planning something against us and plus if we find her perhaps we can stop Scorpius from bombarding us with Sting Wingers" answered Kai. "Karone, you go and look for her. The rest of us will deal with the attacking Sting Wingers and then we'll assist in the search" said Kai in his commanding tone to which Karone nodded.  
Walking into the cargo hold, the six jumped aboard their individual flight vehicles and morphed as they flew out of the Mega Ship before circling back around and flying towards the city with Sting Wingers flying around the skyline. Karone followed her friends towards the city but then split off, diving down towards the city while her friends continued on to take on the Sting Wingers.  
As she descended she spotted another group of Sting Wingers, in an alley with Furio, standing out of sight. Keeping her movements quiet and slow, she floated down so that she was hovering above them. Observing them it was clear they were searching.  
"You know it's not garbage day till Monday right" said Karone squatting down on her glider as she looked down at the Furio, who had been looking through a bin at that particular moment.  
"You again" said Furio with a snarl as he looked up.  
"Yep" snapped back Karone standing up on her glider before twirling around on it and firing out several red lasers that took out the few Sting Wingers that Furio had with him. Furio ducked under the blast directed at him and watched as Karone jumped down, drawing her saber. He growled before turning and running off down the alley towards the street. "Oh no you don't!" shouted Karone after him as she gave chase on foot, leaving her glider floating in the air.  
People screamed and ran aside as Furio ran down the street Karone hot on his tail, refusing to lose him. Then suddenly, now in the open street, he stopped and swung back at her. Karone had only just seen the attack coming and had managed to slide down under the attack past Furio. Turning back and standing on one leg and knee, Karone turned back and blocked Furio's attack from behind before spinning around and slashing back from the other side. Furio easily dodged the attack, but it had also given Karone room to get up and turn to face her opponent.  
"I don't have time for this!" barked an angry Furio as he slashed at Karone, each swing she stepped back and leaned to avoid the blow. He wasn't fighting with sense, he was in a hurry and clearly in no mood for Karone.  
"If you want to find Trakeena so bad then put up posters or something" said Karone before blocking one of Furio's attacks and then quickly countering and knocking his sword form his hand. Now Furio was defenceless and Karone had her saber at his throat. "Sorry, you lose this round" said Karone smugly as she advanced, forcing Furio to back up against a wall. Karone's saber still pressing against his throat, she stared at him as she contemplated what to do next.  
 _Kill him.  
_ Came a small quite voice from inside her but it wasn't her thought, or was it. Her lips parted slightly as she lost focus, as if searching inside herself for the source of the thought. Furio saw her distant stare and took his chance. With one swing of his arm he knocked aside Karone's saber and grabbed hold of her throat with his other hand, squeezing tight as to stop her breathing. "Any last words?" asked Furio pulling Karone's face up against his.  
Karone didn't both to try and speak, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of seeing her struggle. Instead she kicked him hard in between the legs, but he just laughed, it was armoured. She kicked again but the same result.  
"I'm not weak like humans" said Furio with a grin. Karone could only respond with a roll of the eyes before tilting her head back, only to then bring it forward fast and smash against Furio's. He realised his grip on Karone and stumbled back while Karone dropped to her stomach gasping.  
As she processed to get up she was met with Furio's boot in her face as she was sent spinning through the air into a nearby car.  
Karone groaned as she rolled her head, making sure it was still attached and then slowly pushed up off the car. She glanced around where she and Furio had been fighting but there was no sign of him, he'd escaped again. She was really starting to hate when he did that.  
"You guys done with the Sting Wingers?" asked Karone into her morph, sitting in the dented car.  
"Just about, any luck finding Trakeena?" replied Kai.  
"Fraid not, I got into a fight with Furio and well... let's just say it could have gone better than the last one I had with him" said Karone leaning back into the car.  
"Well when we're done we'll come to you and we can continue the search from there" said Kai.  
"Rodger that" said Karone with a hint of sarcasm as she ended the call and pushed herself out of the dent in the car and dusted herself up.  
She looked around the fighting area; puzzled as to what she had heard when she was fighting Furio. Astronema most likely but she hadn't heard from her in a while, ever since Karone and Leo had kissed she'd been all but none existent. Perhaps Furio had some new monster around that was messing with her head. Karone just hopped it wasn't Astronema, that was the last thing she need right now. What with the strange Magna Defender running around, Furio's man hunt for Trakeena and well... everything else that goes on in her life.  
"Karone!" called Leo from down the street as he and the other approached her, demorphed and at walking pace. Karone waved back to show she'd heard them and then jogged over to join them.  
"Hey guys" said Karone as she came to a stop.  
"So no luck finding Trakeena then?" commented Kendrix with a disappointed look on her face.  
"I was busy with Furio, so no" replied Karone with the same look.  
"Well lets split up, we'll cover more ground that way" said Leo, clapping his hands together.  
"And what if Scorpius sends more Sting Wingers?" asked Maya.  
"Then we'll deal with it. But until he does our priority is finding Trakeena, no telling what she's up to" pointed out Kai, with an agreeing nod from Leo.  
"Right lets go then" said Kendrix who walked off, grabbing hold of Karone's arm and taking her along with her.  
"Why are you taking Karone?" asked Damon which stopped Kendrix.  
"She always goes with Leo, and I always go with Kai so I thought I'd shake it up for once" said Kendrix before continuing on, Karone shrugging before willingly following her.  
"In that case I'm going with Leo" said Maya quickly, grabbing him and dragging him over towards her before leading him away, leaving Kai and Damon. Kai's head switched between the two pairs that were walking away before turning back to Damon who was smiling widely at him. Kai however did not have the same attitude and just shook his head while looking at the ground.

After an hour or so of searching through dark alleys and underpasses, Karone and Kendrix were walking through streets towards the next alley when Kendrix broke the silence.  
"What do you think of Kai?" asked Kendrix, clasping her hands in one another as she walked.  
"He's bossy" said Karone looking to her friend with a smile, "But a good guy. Why?"  
"No reason" replied Kendrix trying to avoid the question as she looked away in her shyly fashion.  
"Well that's a bad lie" said Karone with a knowing grin. "Seriously what is it? You like him?" Kendrix's blushing cheeks answered her question long before the shy girl turned back to her friend with an awkward smile.  
"Yes" Kendrix said nervously. "I just don't know how to tell him. No time ever seems to be good, what with work and all this Ranger stuff. And I've been waiting for him to make the first move since we got on Terra Venture" finished Kendrix, sighing at her hopeless romantic life.  
"You told Maya?" asked Karone, establishing who she could talk to about this. Kendrix nodded.  
"She said I should talk to you, seeing as you're the only one in the group that's in a relationship" said Kendrix.  
"Of course she did" muttered Karone under breath, she wasn't surprised that Maya had passed this problem on to her. For a while now the two had had their theories about Kai and Kendrix and now that they'd been confirmed Maya was passing all the drama onto Karone, so she could just sit back and watch.  
"What was that?" asked Kendrix leaning in, having not heard Karone's remark.  
"Nothing" snapped Karone quickly before moving on. "So do you think he's got feelings for you?"  
"I don't know" said Kendrix with a shy shrug. "I was hoping that you'd be able to help me. Give me some help on knowing if he likes me or not and how to ask him out" Karone had to fight the urge to shudder when Kendrix said "ask him out", it just sounded weird coming out her mouth. Karone and Maya were the gossiping ones and Kendrix the grown up. Talking with her like this felt so wrong for some reason, like talking to a single parent about their romantic life, as the kid.  
"Well I knew Leo liked me from the way he acted around me, but even then I still wasn't a hundred percent sure. But then no one ever really is. As for asking him out I can't help you there" said Karone with a light shrug and raise of the hands.  
"What about getting him to ask me out?"  
"Well if you want to get possessed by your evil past self, then that might work" said Karone tilting her head with a thoughtful face. The memory of how Leo had revealed his love coming into her head. It hadn't been the best way to start a relationship but it had worked.  
"No, I mean what if you ask him to ask me out?" suggested Kendrix with a hopeful smile on her face. Karone nodded her head slowly in response, admittedly not found of the idea. If Astronema hadn't taken over and forced Leo to kiss Karone then she'd probably never have asked out Leo. She wasn't the most confident person and had obviously not had the most normal child hood. So asking out boys was hard enough without doing it for someone else.  
"How about we keep brain storming" said Karone as the two headed to the alley in search of Trakeena.

Elsewhere in the city dome of Terra Venture, Leo and Maya were have no better luck than Karone and Kendrix at finding Trakeena. After a long tiring search that had gotten them nowhere they had decided to stop at a small bar like cafe, sitting themselves down at the counter to get served.  
"I hate this" moaned Leo as he hopped up on the bar stool next to Maya.  
"Hate what?" asked Maya.  
"Looking up and down, always over our shoulder, not knowing when the next attack is coming. I think it's starting to get to me" said Leo rubbing his temple as a large man came over to them, from behind the bar, and leaned down on the counter opposite them.  
"Can I help you?" asked the man as he cleaned an empty glass.  
"Yeah, can I get something to eat please" said Leo, still rubbing his head.  
"A burger?" asked the man, trying to narrow down what Leo wanted.  
"Sure" answered Leo, not particularly caring.  
"I'll just have some water please" said Maya, to which the man nodded before turning away to fetch the orders for other customers. With the man gone, Maya turned to Leo with a frown of concern on her face. "What's wrong with you?" she asked putting her hand on his shoulder.  
"Think I'm getting a headache" said Leo with his eyes closed while he rubbed his forehead now.  
"You just need something to eat and drink and you'll feel a lot better, trust me" said Maya rubbing his back as the man returned with her water and plopped it down in front of her. She mouthed 'thanks' to the man who smiled at her as he walked away, before she turned her attention back to Leo. "Here have a drink" said Maya, sliding the water over towards Leo.  
"No thanks" said Leo holding his face in his hands.  
"Just take it" ordered Maya, to which Leo lifted his head to look at her. She was glaring at him with slight annoyance and raised eyebrows, eyes switching between Leo and the water indicating for him to drink it.  
"Fine" said Leo reluctantly as he drank over half the water in one gulp before putting the glass back down with a thud. He then slid it back over to Maya who finished it off, slightly irritated with Leo's attitude.  
"I'm going to head back out and search some more" said Maya getting up.  
"I'll find you when I'm done here" said Leo, avoiding her eyes. Maya knew he was just irritated that he couldn't find Trakeena, or perhaps he was just reliving the feelings he'd had when she'd used a shape shifting monster to disguise it's self as Mike and trick Leo. They all knew who hard that had been on Leo and it wouldn't surprise any of them if he wanted some revenge. Considering that Furio and Scorpius killed his brother, it made sense to get back at them through Trakeena.  
After a moment of silence Maya left, not saying anymore, leaving Leo waiting for his burger. Neither of them aware that Trakeena had just walked in passing Maya, dressed in red dress and heels with sunglass on top of her head. She looked nothing like her normal self which is probably why nobody could find her. She grinned as she looked back at the Yellow Ranger that was oblivious to her presence. She then turned her attention back to the Red Ranger who was slouched against the counter holding his head. With a mischievous grin she sat herself down next to Leo just as the large man dropped the food in front of him, gob smacked with the attractive women in front of him.  
"I'll have what he's having" said Trakeena nodding towards Leo's food with a hot smile.  
"Here you go" said the man, taking Leo's food right out from under him and handing it over to Trakeena.  
"Hey!" said Leo in protest, the man's attention turning back to Leo.  
"She asked for it" said the man, squaring up against Leo.  
"But I'm the one paying for it" snarled Leo. Both unaware of Trakeena who was covering Leo's burger in the potion she'd created, as it splashed on the burger it vanished instantly. The bun had absorbed it and now the burger looked as if it had never been touched by Trakeena. She turned back to Leo just as the man behind the counter walked off in a huff.  
"I believe this is yours" said Trakeena, playing nice, as she slide the plate back to Leo.  
"Thanks" said Leo with a smile as he took back his burger. He was about to take a bit out of it when he spotted the woman next to him staring at him. "Can I help you?" asked Leo looking at her awkwardly.  
"Sorry" said Trakeena, looking away and pretending to be embarrassed. "It's just you have very pretty eyes" Trakeena said looking back at Leo's eyes with a soft smile and fluttering eyelashes.  
"Well thanks, but I'm taken" said Leo, putting down the burger. "I've got a girlfriend" said Leo guessing that the woman was trying to hit on him, when she was really trying to poison him.  
"Oh! Oh-oh I'm so embarrassed" said Trakeena looking away, "I'll leave you along now"  
"Appreciated" said Leo as he turned back to his burger and bit into it, Trakeena smiling at him as he did. "Are you o-" Leo got out, noticing Trakeena's wide smile but was then cut off by the sharp pain in his chest. He clutched his chest and fell from the stool, everyone now looking at him, while Trakeena took one of his fries and nibbled on it.  
"What's going on with him?" asked the man behind the counter as he leaned over looking at Leo rolling on the floor.  
"Heart burn" said Trakeena with a sly smile and narrowed eyes at Leo. "Now get out of here" she snapped turning back to the man.  
"Excuse me" replied the man, clearly offended by the statement Trakeena had just made. With a snap of her fingers Trakeena's hot red dress vanished and she returned into her normal black full body bug armour and black makeup, everyone instantly recognising her.  
"I said get out!" Trakeena snapped again and before she knew it the room had cleared out and the large man behind the counter had run screaming. He tripped up twice on his way out as he grabbed hold of an old man and shoved him out the door in front of him. Now that she was along with Leo she turned to him and knelt down beside him on the ground.  
"Tra...Tra...Tra" Leo stuttered, with his body shaking slightly, almost completely paralysed.  
"Shut it" said Trakeena grinning down at him as the paralysis took over, freezing his whole body. "You just drank one of my home made potions. First it'll paralyse your body, and then knock you out" explained Trakeena with a satisfied grin on her face as Leo began to fill dizzy. His vision was blurring and the edge of her vision was begging to go black, creeping inwards slowly. "Then you'll forget all of this, turn on your friends. See that's how the potion works, it turns love into hate so you'll push everyone away. Then Astronema can come back and with her help I'll over throw my father and never have to become a bug queen" said Trakeena shuddering as she finished. "Then again what's the point in telling you? Not like you'll remember anyway" Trakeena said with a smile down at Leo before he blacked out. With Leo out cold Trakeena got to her feet and existed the bar, now all she needed was for Leo to break Karone's heart and turn her back into Astronema and then she'd be able to take over from her father.  
Stepping out of the bar she shot out some green lightening at the nearby civilians sending them running and screaming. Good she thought, now that she'd caused as scene both inside and outside the bar the Rangers ought to be hear any second. She wanted her plan to move fast, she was never good a waiting or playing the long game. But with the potion's help Leo would turn Karone and teh others soon enough. As she looked around at the running civilians she spotted five colourful Rangers running down the street towards her.  
"Why hello Rangers" said Trakeena to her enemies with a evil grin.  
"Trakeena. Some of your friends have been looking for" said Karone, who was in the middle of the line of Rangers, Damon and Maya on one side and Kai and Kendrix on the other.  
"I don't have friends" snapped Trakeena, snarling at the Rangers.  
"Where's Leo?" demanded Maya noticing her friend's absence and that he had been in the bar Trakeena had emerged from.  
"He's having a little nap" said Trakeena with a sly grin, eyes drifting back towards the bar entrance. Once Trakeena had practically admitted to having knocked Leo out, Karone pounced. She drew her Phoenix Saber and slashed outwards towards Trakeena who lifted her staff, blocking the attack with ease. "That all you got?" snarled Trakeena gritting her teeth at Karone.  
"Yeah. But that's why I brought help" said Karone, smiling behind her visor. Looking to her other side Trakeena spotted Maya coming in from her right. Ducking under the attack Trakeena countered and knocked Maya aside, before blocking the double attack from Kai and Kendrix. She pushed them back and rolled away from Karone's sword swipe and then swiped Kendrix up with her staff. Kai came in to defend Kendrix but Trakeena easily tripped him up and then slashed him across the chest.  
"Kai!" shouted Kendrix getting to her knees. Before Trakeena had a chance to hit him again Kendrix intercepted the attack with her saber. Looking back Trakeena saw Damon transforming his Transdagger into its blaster mode, she dived out the way as Damon fired accidently hitting Kendrix.  
"Kendrix!" screamed Damon in horror at his mistake, watching from a few meters away as Kendrix's saber left her hand and she dropped.  
"Kendrix! Kendrix are you ok?" Kai shouted as he crawled to her side and shook her, trying to prompt a response from his friend. Before Damon could move to help his friends he was struck by green lightening which Trakeena shot at him, he dropped the ground clutching his chest. The pain that would normally be bearable feeling extreme, his exhaustion was getting to him and the others from what he could see. He's eyes moved from Kai and Kendrix who lay defeated on the ground to Maya and Karone who tried to fight Trakeena. From the way she fought, Damon knew that any other day the Rangers could take her, but after their tiring day they could barley hold their own against her.  
Maya ducked under a swing of Trakeena's staff, but as she stood back up she was met with Trakeena's foot to her chest sending her toppling to the ground. In a flash of yellow her Ranger suit faded away and she lay breathlessly on the ground. Karone came at Trakeena with a swing of her saber and Trakeena easily blocked it before hitting Karone in the head with the end of her staff. Stumbling backwards Karone held her head with her free hand as Trakeena knocked her saber from her hand and then swung back and knocked Karone to the ground with her staff.  
"And here I thought you'd be a challenge" said Trakeena shaking her head in disappointment with a smug smile on her face. She watched as in a flash off purple Karone's suit vanished leaving her lying in her civilian clothes, defeated. "I hope Astronema is more powerful than you" said Trakeena before leaning in close and whispering into Karone's ear "When you want to find me, I'll be waiting on Onyx" she said quietly, almost as if not wanting Karone to hear. She then stood up, walking off while Karone watched her vanish in a flash of green.  
 _Why would she tell me that?  
_ Karone asked herself, as if questioning herself. Was Trakeena trying to talk to Astronema, trying to get her to come out and join forces with her? Because if that was her plan then she clearly didn't know Astronema very well. Astronema didn't partner with anyone, she was the ruler and would do whatever it took to achieve her goals of world domination.  
"What happened here?" asked Leo as he walked out of the bar, an amused smile on his face.  
"Trakeena kicked our butts" muttered Damon as he pushed himself up to his knees.  
"You're kidding" said Leo with a smirk. "You guys couldn't take Trakeena? Man you all suck as Rangers" this earned Leo five looks of annoyance and hurt as the Rangers all looked to him. "Come on guys, it's a joke" said Leo defensively.  
"Well it's not funny Leo" said Karone as she pushed herself off the ground like the rest of the Rangers, each struggling as their bodies shook nearly giving out under themselves.  
"Jeez Karone why do you have to be so uptight the whole time?" asked Leo in an irritated tone. The four other Rangers sharing looks of concern between them as they sensed a fight coming.  
"Excuse me?" said Karone, attitude in her voice as she stepped towards Leo. "Me uptight?"  
"Yeah" said Leo as if it was obvious, looking around the Rangers for confirmation. But they all looked back at him with eyes that wanted him to stop before he said something even more stupid. "All you do is moan and cry about Astronema" said Leo covering his mouth with widened eyes of sarcasm as he said the name. "Sorry, we're not allowed to say it are we" said Leo dropping his hand.  
"What's wrong with you?" asked Karone walking up to him and looking him in the eye, searching for any sign of control or manipulation.  
"Nothing's wrong Karone. In fact I think I'm finally starting to see clearly" snapped Leo snarling at her. "I see that you're self centred and don't care about anyone else problems other than your own" Leo's eyes telling Karone that he was serious and meant every word. She was speechless, she'd never thought that this was how he felt about her.  
"Leo I think you need to sit down for a minute" said Damon stepping in between them and pushing them lightly, trying to separate them but Leo wasn't having it and shoved Damon aside.  
"No Damon! I'm fine standing"  
"Leo stop it!" ordered Kendrix.  
"Or what Kendrix, or what?" asked Leo turning his anger on her as he matched up to her. "It's not like you say much, do much, in fact I'm pretty sure that saber picked you by accident"  
"What's wrong with you Leo" demanded Kai stepping in front of Kendrix as if to shield her form Leo's sudden anger. "She's your friend, we all are"  
"Friends! Let's get it straight here and now. We have to work together because of these things" said Leo holding up is morpher to indicate to it. "We don't have to be friends because of them. I don't like any of you, you're all just hypocrites" said Leo with disgust.  
"Well you're not even a real Ranger" Maya spoke up, trying a fighting approach to Leo's anger.  
"Oh that's real nice" Leo said turning to face Maya, "Bring up my dead brother. Don't you think I've been through enough, I had no choice but to do this for him. I never would have agreed to this if I'd know what annoying people you all are!" shouted Leo as his face moved inches away from Maya's.  
"Leo please" begged Karone taking his arm.  
"Get off me!" Leo snapped as he shoved Karone away from him. "I don't know what I ever saw in you. You haven't changed one bit. You are Astronema. And you'll never be anything else" said Leo as Karone's lips parted and hurt filled her eyes. The Astronema card was a harsh on to play and it was that kind of talk that changed friendships.  
"Shut it Leo" said Maya as she pulled Leo back away from Karone and the four Rangers formed a line with Karone in the middle, facing off against Leo. "I don't know what's wrong with you but I can't believe you mean a word of it" said Maya, fighting eyes locked on Leo encase he attacked them suddenly, she was sure he was under some kind of mind control.  
"There's nothing wrong with me. Everything I'm saying. It needs to be said" said Leo harshly.  
"Go away" said Karone in a quiet whisper which no one heard.  
"You people think you're so much better than me. You think I'm scum and that I don't disserve these powers and that it was just a pass down from Mike"  
"That's not it at all Leo" said Kendrix in protest.  
"Go away" said Karone again, a little louder.  
"Well you lot clearly can't even handle Trakeena, so maybe you aren't cut out for being Rangers, maybe you should all just pass down you powers too"  
"You don't mean that Leo" pleaded Maya.  
"Yeah we're you friends, come on man" said Damon.  
"Go away" said Karone louder but still no one paid attention.  
"You know what? Maybe I should just take the power from you" said Leo holding out his morpher as if to morph.  
"Leo snap out of it. Your being controlled" said Kai as he stepped forward.  
"No I'm not!" shouted Leo, "Go Galac-"  
"GO AWAY!" screamed Karone as he eyes turned bright purple and a wave of energy shot out of her and sent the five Rangers surrounding her flying. The five rolled across the ground all groaning in pain as their skin scrapped across the ground, leaving cuts and burses across their skin. When they stopped and looked up Karone's eyes were glowing purple and she was breathing heavily with baring teeth. An unnoticeable tear trailing down her cheek as the purple glow around her eyes began to fade.  
"Karone..." said Leo as he looked up, shaking his head as if he'd just woken up. But then his amused smile came back and his eyes locked onto hers and he continued. "Once evil, always evil" he said smirking at the whimpering Karone in front of him. She stood shaking as she shook her head in disbelief, staring at him for a moment to make sure this wasn't a dream. But it was real, everything he said was real. With tears welling in her eyes, she turned and ran down the street pressing down on her morpher to call her glider. It swooped down from the sky and she jumped up as the glider slide under her and took her up towards the sky.

Landing the Mega Ship, Karone hopped off her glider and dashed through the ship towards the bridge. A hand covering her mouth as tears slide out form her eyes. What had she done, things had been going to well and then it had gone so wrong so quickly. It felt too good to be true, that everything would work out and that she could live a happy life free of Astronema. She had been foolish to think her friends hadn't cared about her past, how could anyone ignore all her past deeds and evil doings. How could she forget it all like it was some bad dream.  
Brushing aside the tears she stormed into the bridge, pushing past Alpha as she came to a stop at the control consol and began typing in commands. She sniffed in as she felt her eyes ache, rubbing them as if that would end all her pain, physical and emotional.  
"Karone. Is everything ok?" asked Alpha as watched form the doorway.  
"Everything's fine Alpha" lied Karone as she wiped her eyes once again with her wrists. "D.E.C.A ready the ship for takeoff" ordered Karone as she finished typing at one consol and moved onto the one beside it.  
"As you wish Karone" said D.E.C.A. as the ship's engines came to life and it began to levitate above the ground. Pulling in the landing gears, the ships engines grew in strength as they prepared themselves for space travel. Karone was finishing with the control consol and gripping the flight control joysticks in both hands as Alpha stepped up behind her.  
"Are you sure you're ok?" asked Alpha, his robotic voice surprisingly thick with concern.  
"Yes Alpha" said Karone with a sniff as she pushed the controls forward and the Mega Ship flew out of Terra Venture's hanger and into space.  
"Would you like me to set a course?" asked D.E.C.A. as the ship shot across the blackness of space, in the opposite direction of Terra Venture.  
"No thank you D.E.C.A" said Karone, her eyes fixed on the space in front of her.  
"What about the Rangers?" asked Alpha as he stood behind Karone.  
"They'll be fine on their own" said Karone, a hint of spite in her voice, Alpha taking it as a hint to leave her alone. He exited the bridge allowing the depressed and isolated woman a moment of privacy while he did his normal duties. Looking up at the red lighted camera in the corner of the bridge, Karone sighed. "D.E.C.A, could you enter standby mode for awhile. I'd like to be alone" said Karone.  
"Of course Karone" responded D.E.C.A. and the red light in the camera faded, now Karone was truly alone. This was exactly what she needed, to get away from it all with no one to bother her. She was better off on her own anyway, always had been, always will be.

 _Hi me again. I personally felt that this chapter was a bit rushed, but I really want to move onto the next section of the story. To give you an idea of how I'm planning this, in my head I've split it up into three sections or arcs. I'm now close to finishing the first arc and will soon be moving onto the second which I've really been looking forward to and I hope you guys enjoy it.  
And in order to move on I had to get Leo and Karone to break up, sad I know, but necessary and I didn't want to spend another two or three chapters setting up their break up. Poor planning on my part but I really want to move the story along and this was the best way in my head to do it. So there you have my ruff plan. Thanks for reading and once again sorry for making you all wait so long for this, I do appreciate you reading and you reviews. Thanks and hopefully see you soon.  
_ _J_


	13. Xroth

**Chapter 13: Xroth**

"Well if she's not on Terra Venture, where is she Furio?!" Scorpius' voice bellowed through the ship as his tentacles tightened around Furio's chest which also trapped his arms at his side. Unable to research his sword, Furio only had hope that Scorpius wouldn't kill him. "Well Furio?" snapped Scorpius as he shook him around the room, waiting for his answer.  
"My lord... I don't... know" Furio said in between gasps of pain as the tentacles grip prevented him from breathing properly. "Please... I will find her... just... let me go" pleaded Furio as he tried pointlessly to break free from Scorpius.  
"No!" shouted Scorpius as he lifted Furio into the air and then slammed him back down on the ground. As Furio groaned aloud, the tentacles around him loosened and slipped away allowing him to catch his breath. "It is clear you can't be trusted with a matter this important. You have failed to return my daughter and have no clues as to where she's gone. I should kill you here and now for all your recent failures" Looking up at his master Furio, knelt down and clasped his hands together as if praying to his lord for forgiveness.  
"Please Scorpius"  
"Silence!" shouted Scorpius over Furio's begging, which shut him up. "I'm giving you one last chance to prove yourself. Fail again and you'll die. Not just this task but any task I give you, understand?" asked Scorpius, his tentacles lying on the floor surrounding Furio, ready to strike again if he refused.  
"Yes Scorpius. I will not fail you again, I will fight to my last breath for you" said Furio as he lowered his head.  
"Good. I want you to go to Xroth" and at the mention of the planet a holographic projection appeared in front of Furio. The planet was small compared to others and didn't have much green land on it, more like a blob of green forest here and there but ultimately it was orange sanded planet with a thin line of blue around the equator of the planet. The planets only water source, that's where most of the green blobs resided and where the few thousand residents of the planet lived. To live anywhere else on the planet would mean certain death but it was believed that at both poles of the planet had two weapons of unimaginable power. They had never been found and some argued it was just a myth but it was fact that anyone that had gone looking for them had never been seen again.  
"I want you to conquer this planet for me" ordered Scorpius after the hologram of the planet had done a full rotation. After another it vanished and Furio got to his feet before nodding in obedience.  
"It will be done Scorpius" and with that Furio existed the throne room and walked to the hanger where several ships where waiting for him, along with a small army of Sting Wingers. The planet was easy pickings and Furio was curious as to why Scorpius wanted it but wasn't going to ask at the risk of his head being cut off. He failed Scopius too much recently and to start questioning him would only lead to more trouble for him. Instead he looked at the positives, such as at least there would be no Power Rangers out on Xroth.

Karone was just waking up in her old room on the Mega Ship when Alpha walked in, a tray in hands with cooked breakfast on top. He handed over the tray and Karone thanked him before starting to eat.  
"Are you feeling better today?" asked Alpha, a reassuring hand on Karone's shoulder. Karone ignored the question for a moment, focusing on eating the cooked breakfast. But when she realised that Alpha wasn't leaving until he got an answer she quickly began to think up one while slowly chewing what was in her mouth.  
"I'm good Alpha" lied Karone, looking down at her plate while she picked up some more bacon with her knife and fork. Alpha stood for a moment before removing his hand form Karone's shoulder and existing the room. Karone wasn't sure if he knew the truth of how she felt or not, but she was certain that she didn't want to talk about it.  
Finishing of her breakfast she sat the tray aside as she slide out of bed and opened up her cupboard. Inside were all her old cloths from when she'd travelled with Andros and the others, which now felt like a life time ago. Some of the cloths inside would probably still fit her, but she decided to stick with her black leather cloths she'd worn the previous day. Once dressed, Karone looked to her dresser were her purple hairband and silver choker lay.  
However in between them was her old necklace, the locket with the baby photos of her and Andros and the little sliver claws sticking outwards that made the necklace look rather threatening. Looking at the necklace she could only see Astronema's smile, lurking behind it in the shadows. She didn't remember brining it aboard the ship, as far as she'd known it had been locked away in her dresser the whole time she'd been on Terra Venture.  
Picking it up in her hand the necklace felt warm, soft, nice in her hand. A light smile came to her face as she opened the locket looking at the two photos inside. She then closed the locket and put it on around her neck, leaving behind her hairband and choker. True the necklace looked out of place around her neck and didn't match her current outfit, but Karone didn't mind, she just wanted to wear it. Looking down at the necklace she noticed the yellow marking on the front of the locket, the symbol of Astronema. Suddenly it the symbol began to glow purple and Karone's eyes with it. She stared at the locket as if in a trance, the purple glow from her eyes and the locket matching and growing in brightness.  
"Karone" called D.E.C.A. from outside her room. The purple glow then quickly faded and Karone shook her head, dizzy and unsure of what had just happened. Shrugging it off as the idea of her still waking up, Karone walked out her room and looked up to the camera with the red lighted centre looking down at her.  
"Yes D.E.C.A. what is it?" asked Karone putting one hand against the wall as she talked to the I.A. of the Mega Ship.  
"I was wondering if you had decided upon a destination?" asked D.E.C.A. the red light in the camera flashing as she spoke.  
"Not yet D.E.C.A. At the moment I'm just seeing where the wind takes me" said Karone.  
"Physically impossible as there is no wind in space-"  
"Thank you D.E.C.A. it was just a metaphor" said Karone shaking her head as she turned away and headed down the corridor towards the bridge of the ship. Walking onto the bridge it was quite, like the rest of the ship. Spinning a chair around Karone dropped down into it and spun herself around to face the black space ahead. Gazing dreamily out the window her mind drifted to her friends. Though she was no longer on speaking terms with them she did miss them and was curious what they were up to while she was floating through space.

"Leo calm down!" shouted Maya which earned her a frying pan being hurled at her head which she only just ducked under. She and Damon had been given the increasingly hard task of watching Leo while Kai and Kendrix were at work. The Blue and Pink Rangers had sat with Leo through the night trying to contain him to his room and stop him from hurting anyone. He'd been enraged ever since they're fight with Trakeena and they had no idea what was causing him to be so violent and hostile towards his friends.  
As Maya poked her head up from under the counter of the kitchen she quickly retreated down wards when Leo threw another pan in her direction. She and Damon had been in all of two seconds before Leo had turned his rage and anger on them and Kai and Kendrix had made their speedy exist.  
"I think we should just leave and lock the door" suggested Damon who was knelt down beside Maya.  
"We can't just abandon him Damon" said Maya in protest at the idea as two plates flew over head and smashed against the wall.  
"Sure we can, he's got plates for days. Let him smash up the place and when he's calmed down we'll come back in" Damon said hopefully, but Maya wasn't about to let anyone leave the apartment until Leo was back to his usual self.  
"Not going to happen Damon" said Maya stubbornly. She peeked over the counter and saw Leo had his back turned to her. Taking her chance she leapt over the counter and tackled Leo to the ground.  
"Get off me!" shouted Leo as Maya fought to keep his hands pined against the ground. As Leo slashed about on the floor, he managed to get the upper hand on Maya and forced her off him. Reaching up to the counter he grabbed a knife and would have stabbed Maya, had Damon not grabbed hold of his knife welding arm.  
"Come on Leo. It's us" said Damon trying to get through to him.  
"Let go!" screamed Leo as he tried to plunge the knife into Maya's chest, with Damon pulling his arm back each time like an elastic band. Leo then turned his fury to Damon and leaped up into the air and kicked Damon aside, the knife sliding across the ground. Leo went to pounce on Damon but he managed to lift his feet up to block Leo and then springboarded him away with a kick to the chest. With Leo on the ground Maya twirled around while cartwheeling over Leo and landed on top of him, quickly landing several punches to the face in hopes of knocking him out. However Leo was more resistant than Maya had thought and pushed her off with a hard shove.  
Spotting the knife Leo grabbed it as he went for another attempt at stabbing Maya. She caught both off Leo's hands, that were holding the knife, and held the knife still above her yellow dress.  
"Leo, think about what you're doing" pleaded Maya as her eyes darted from Leo's to the knife that was getting closer to her skin. Leo's baring teeth making him look like a maniac or serial killer. With the knife now cutting through her skin, Maya knew she couldn't fight Leo and the force of gravity off as the knife began to sink into her chest. A blood stain beginning to spreading out around her dress. Another second and the wound might have been worse, luckily Damon charged in and knocked Leo aside, the knife landing at Maya's side.  
Watching the two men roll about on the ground Maya grabbed the knife and got back to her feet, one hand with the knife the other holding the cut in her chest to stop the bleeding. Her eyes followed the two as they rolled about the room, swapping punch for punch as they switched who was on top. Finally Damon rolled aside and Leo flipped up to his feet, advancing on Damon. Running in to defend her friend Maya slashed at Leo with the knife, cutting his arm, Leo's attention was back on her. Swiping with the knife Maya tried to keep Leo back out of striking distance as he pushed her back against the wall. With a heavy punch coming her way, Maya ducked under the attack and cut Leo's leg with the knife causing him to cry in pain. With the distraction Maya slipped around and came up behind Leo, grabbing hold of his head she slammed him into the wall until he went limp and she let go. Watching his body fall backwards to the ground, eyes shut and still breathing.  
"Tie him up" ordered Maya as Damon joined her beside Leo's flat body.  
"Seriously?" asked Damon.  
"You saw what he was like. There's no why we can trust him for the time being. For our protection and his, we have to tie him up" explained Maya as she sat the blood covered knife down on the counter and bent down by Leo's feet. "You get the head" ordered Maya and Damon grabbed hold, the two then lifting him over to the chair. Dropping him down, the two then pushed the chair back and Damon fished out a rope which they used to tie Leo down to the chair and the chair to the beds.  
"Is all this really necessary?" asked Damon as the two stepped back from Leo, observing the large amount of rope that was wrapped around Leo, the chair and the beds. "I mean tying the chair to the bed was a bit overkill don't you think" said Damon looking to Maya.  
"I'm not risking him moving in anyway. With the chair tied to the beds it makes it that much harder for him to escape" said Maya folding her arms as she stared at her unconscious friend.  
"What do you think happened to him" asked Damon.  
"Wish I knew. I just hope that Kai and Kendrix can find something at work on how to fix him. Otherwise we're two Rangers down" said Maya sighing.  
"Where do you think she went?" Damon said as he sat down in the sofa that was now facing Leo.  
"Karone?" asked Maya looking back down at Damon on the sofa.  
"Yeah" Maya waited a moment as she considered her answer, glaring at Leo as she thought.  
"Anywhere but here I'd guess" answered Maya as she fell backwards into the sofa next to Damon. "I just want her to come back soon"  
"Me too" agreed Damon as the two stared at Leo, waiting for him to wake up and ruin the peace and quiet.

Back on the Mega Ship Karone was brought out of her thoughts by a sudden beeping sound coming from one of the side consoles on the bridge. Leaving the comfort of her chair and Karone leaned against the beeping consol and examined it, searching for the cause of the beeping.  
"D.E.C.A. what's going on?" asked Karone as she began to press buttons on the consol.  
"It appears there's a distress signal coming in from Xroth" said D.E.C.A.  
"What kind of distress signal?" Karone asked as she pressed a button and the message began to play. The voice that spoke was human, old and thick as if he had a cold.  
"Please. To anyone that can hear. We are under attack. Scorpius has-" suddenly the message was cut off and Karone found herself pressing more buttons on the consol trying to get the message to continue.  
"D.E.C.A. what happened, where'd the message go?" asked Karone as she fiddled with the consol.  
"It appears to be blocked by some unknown force" explained D.E.C.A.  
"Set course for Xroth" said Karone as she turned away from the side consol and took her place at the main consol with the joysticks in the centre.  
"Would you like me to call the other Rangers?" asked D.E.C.A. The question caught Karone off guard and she froze for a moment as she considered the idea.  
"No. I'll handle this myself" said Karone firmly as she took hold of the joysticks and turned the ship so that it was facing Xroth. Typing with one hand she readied the thrusters for full power and with a final push of a button she felt the ship jerk forwards as it shot across the black sky towards Xroth.

Storming into the large village, Furio and his Sting Wingers began to blast and slice their way through anything that stood in their way. Whether it was people, fences, buildings they cut through it charging towards the central pyramid at the centre of the village. The pyramid was holly ground for the village folk of Xroth and was only to be stepped on if given permission by the prophets or elders. Each village had their own temple and prophet, both of which had been around for as long as the planet had. The prophets were seen as the rulers of the world. For this reason Furio was determined to kill them, he had it fixed in his head that if he killed them he would be able to take over the world for Scorpius.  
"Get out of the way!" shouted Furio as he knocked aside an elderly woman with his sword. Then raising his sword, so that it pointed at a small hut in front of him, he blasted out a bolt of red energy and the hut was reduced to nothing before him. Stomping over the wreckage, woman and men wept as their village was destroyed around them.  
"To the temple!" ordered Furio, pointing towards it with his sword. His Sting Winger army lifting their heads from their individual tasks and looking towards the temple. They cheered some strange sound that sounded like buzzing and joined Furio as he marched towards the temple.  
Reaching the stairs, a man ran at him. Screaming, begging him not to step on the holly ground. But he didn't even get close to Furio as two Sting Wingers grabbed him while another slashed him across the chest. The defenceless man flew through the air and crashed down clutching his chest as some villagers gathered to help him.  
The Sting Wingers watched from the base of the pyramid as Furio climbed towards the top were a doorway near the top lead him inside. Crouching down as he walked inside he found the room to be lined with torches and at the end was an elderly man dressed in red robes with long grey hair that reached down his back and wrapped around his stomach.  
The man appeared to be in a deep state of meditation, almost as if he was dead. Furio takes a single step forwards and the man's eyes snap open and lock with Furio's. But other than that the man makes no reaction to Furio's presence, despite the sword and armour the man seems peaceful.  
"Are you the prophet?" demands Furio. The man remains silent causing Furio to punch the wall in anger, showing the man he wasn't afraid to beat the answer out of the man. "Are you the prophet?!" repeats Furio.  
"Yes" answers the elderly man, his voice sounding younger than he looked. A thin grin passed Furio's lips as he advanced on the man raising his sword, ready to kill him. "But I am merely one of twelve. And killing us will not give you what you want" Furio didn't hesitate, he blocked out the man's speech and sliced down at an angle cutting through his neck.  
Walking out off the pyramid Furio looked down on his Sting Winger army with the burning village around them. Glancing around the edge of the village, he could see what little was left of the population was running for the cover of the forest. He didn't need them so he let them run. He'd now killed two of the twelve village prophets and that left only ten more villages to visit and then he'd be done. Raising his sword towards the sky he cried triumphantly and his Sting Winger army joined in.

The Mega Ship began to slow as Xroth came into view. Karone taking manual control and guiding the large blue ship down to the planet's surface. Flying across the orange desert, in an instant it changed to the green tree tops with an opening a head which had the tip of a pyramid pocking out in the centre. At a closer look, she passed over a large village built around the pyramid.  
"I'll going down, D.E.C.A. take over and keep the ship out of orbit until I call for it" orders Karone as she realises her grip on the controls and runs down the corridor towards the hanger at the back of the ship. She jumped aboard her Phoenix glider and instantly morphed on touch. The glider began to hover above the ground, a light purple glow admitting from below it. Once the doors were open Karone shot out and circled around the village until finding a suitable spot to land. She dropped low and when close enough she jumped from her glider and rolled across the ground landing safely.  
Looking up she demorphed as glider vanished into the sky. Smiling to herself as she got up, she took all of two steps before finding herself surrounded by the villagers. The man on the inner side of the circle that surrounded her, with spears in hand, and the woman on the outer side with rocks in hand.  
"Wait! I'm not here to hurt you" shouts Karone before any of them attack, throwing her hands above her head as the universal sign of surrender. "I'm a Power Ranger. I got your distress signal and I'm here to help" she explained. But the villagers only stare at her tensely, as if they were all discussing telepathically what to do with her.  
Karone remained still until a woman spoke up.  
"Let her pass" ordered the woman, and the crowd parted allowing Karone to see who it was that had such control over the village folk. Not surprising to her it was an elderly woman, though she stood up straight with a red robe wrapped around her body and bold. Her skin was wrinkly but didn't seem to slag nor did it make the woman look old at a quick glance either. For whatever age she was, she looked fit and strong.  
"Come with me" the woman said as she turns and started to walk through the village. It took a moment for the command to settle in Karone's mind, but once it did she rushed after the woman and swapped to a walking pace when she reached her, keeping in line with the elder.  
"Where are we going?" asked Karone, looking back to the villagers that weren't following them.  
"To the temple" answered the woman as they walk. Looking back Karone could see the villagers still had untrusting eyes on her, as if being a Power Ranger wasn't good enough for them. "Thank you for coming" said the elder, bring Karone's attention back to her.  
"It's no problem, sorry what was your name?" asked Karone, the woman giving a weak laugh at the question.  
"My name? Not many people ask, I'm just known as the prophet of this village"  
"So should I call you prophet?" asked Karone, confused how someone couldn't have a name, but rather a title.  
"It's what everyone else calls me, so yes" Now at the foot of the temple, they begin to climb up to the top.  
"So where are Scorpius' forces now?" asked Karone as they climb, trying to figure out how long she had to prepare and what she was up against. She was starting to feel butterflies in her stomach, wishing that she'd called her friends. Maybe if she called them right now they could still get here in time to help. But then Karone remembered Leo and the hurtful things he'd said to her and the thought was pushed aside. She could handle this alone and would save these people.  
"They'll be here shortly" answered the Prophet mysteriously making Karone cringe. Why couldn't the woman give her a straight answer, it would make it easier in saving her life and the villagers. "I don't planning on living through this" stated the woman, as if she'd been reading Karone's thoughts. Though startled, Karone continues on with the woman towards the peak of the temple.  
"Why not?"  
"I'm old, for one thing, you get bored of living at some point or another. I'm ready to die. If the battle doesn't take me, then I'll pass in my sleep sooner or later" explained the woman, starting to breath heavily and looking clearly exhausted.  
"We can stop for a second if you want" suggested Karone but the elder continues on.  
"I appreciate your concern, but I must speak to with you"  
"We can do that here"  
"No. We must do it in the temple" protested the elder as she stubbornly continues on, Karone following a few steps behind and ready to catch her should the woman suddenly fall back on herself. Upon reaching the top, the elder lead Karone inside, a small circular room with a even smaller wooden table with two cushions on either side and a try with two cups and a teapot in the centre. The woman staggered around to the other side, kneeing down on the cushion before sitting herself down and crossing her legs. She gestures for Karone to sit and she does so, her legs crossed like the elders. Taking the old white tea pot with warn green markings on it, the elder poured green tea into each of the cups and passed one over to Karone.  
"Thank you" said Karone, before taking a sip. It tasted awful but Karone smiled politely and swallowed it down, fighting the urge to throw it back up.  
"Impressive, few people have ever been able to stomach my tea" said the elder with a thin lipped smile, putting the down the tea she hadn't touched already knowing it tasted awful.  
"Wait, if you knew it tasted bad then why make me drink it?" asked Karone.  
"The tea has special herbs that help balance the mind. Most people around here have drunken it, consider it a thank you for coming to our rescue"  
"You didn't-" Karone stopped to cough, hitting her chest as she feels the tea get stuck, "-have to do that. I'm a Power Ranger, it's my job to help" explained Karone with a sincere smile. "Speaking of, why is Scorpius invading you're home?"  
"Probably looking for the legendary Xroth Daggers" said the old woman with a heavy sigh, as if she'd gone through it a hundred times.  
"What are the Xroth Daggers?"  
"Weapons of evil, they are extremely powerful"  
"Then why not use them against Scorpius' forces?"  
"Anyone who holds the weapons becomes evil, the daggers control the users and make them followers of evil. They are to dangerous to be use, thus way we hid them at opposite ends of the planet. One at the North pole, the other at the South"  
"Why are you telling me this?" asked Karone with a frown of curiosity.  
"It seems only fair that you know what you're frightening to protect. But know that if Scorpius gets his hands on those daggers it will be end of you and your friends" warned the elder with a shaking voice. Karone nodding to show that she understood.  
"So what do you want me to do, take one of the daggers?"  
"Only as a last resort. You fought of your evil side before so you might be able to fight it and the dagger off again, but only as a last resort" explained the woman, Karone nodding again to show she understood the seriousness of her warning and instructions. "The villagers are reading for battle, you should rest, have some more tea" said the woman with a teasing smile, Karone laughs.  
"I'm good thanks. I'm happy to sit here with you before battle" Karone said with a friendly smile which the elder graciously returned, the two sitting and chatting as they waited for Scorpius' forces to reach their door step.

Back on Terra Venture, Kai and Kendrix were returning from their shift at the command centre to get some much needed shut eye. But upon opening the door they quickly realised that sleep wasn't going to be happening anytime soon. Looking into the room from the doorway, Kai and Kendrix sighed at the sight of Leo tied down to a chair which was then tied to the bunk beds.  
"What's going on?" asked Kai, the two stepping into the room were Damon was eating a sandwich and Maya was tensely staring at Leo, still unconscious.  
"Maya knocked Leo out" said Damon, mouth full of sandwich.  
"What?!" exclaimed Kai and Kendrix in unison, turning on Maya.  
"He was attacking us" said Maya defensively, looking away from Leo to her friends. "I didn't have a choice. He even tried to stab me" she adds, pointing the blood stain on her dress. Damon had helped her cover the wound after tying down Leo but it still hurt a little when she moved.  
"So now what?" asked Kendrix, Leo groaning as he slowly came too.  
"Uh...Wh-what? Where?" Leo groaned as he comes too, looking around them room. He tries to move, but finds himself restrained, gritting his teeth he pulls at the ropes around his arms but with no succession. "Let me go!" demands Leo thrashing about in the chair, shaking it from side to side.  
"Not until you calm down" said Maya with a glare at her angry friend. She wasn't planning on letting him go even if he did calm down, there was too much of a chance that he'd turn on them again.  
"This is ridicules" said Kendrix as she walked over to Leo and began untying him.  
"Kendrix don't" warned Maya as she got up to stop her friend, but she was too late. With one arm free Leo pushes Kendrix away into the approaching Maya and rips of the other bindings. Now free Leo jumps over May and Kendrix and runs for the door, Kai tries to stop him but gets knocked aside and escapes the room.  
"Damon! Get after him" ordered Kai, Damon still seated at the table with his sandwich half in his mouth.  
"But... my sandwich" sighs Damon as Kai gives him the stink eye. Groaning he drops the sandwich and chases after Leo with the others quick to follow.

A sudden explosion from outside the temple ended Karone's conversation with the elder. Getting to her feet and rushing to the doorway, looking out over the village to see Furio and a small army of Sting Wingers marching into the village. "It's Furio" says Karone looking to the Prophet who frowned at her.  
"Go, I'll be fine" said the elder, waving her away with her hand.  
"I'll stop him, promise" said Karone racing out the doorway to help the villagers. "Phoenix Power!" yelled Karone as she flipped through the air and landed at the base of the pyramid full morphed. She pulls out her Phoenix Saber and charges to help the villagers fight off the advancing army. She types a command into her morpher and watches as over head her Phoenix glider flies past, blasting several of the Sting Wingers before they can hurt the villagers.  
"What!" shouts Furio in frustration as the glider flies overhead. "These people shouldn't have... Wait a minute that's-"  
"-Mine" finishes Karone as Furio looks back to the village to see Karone charging at him. She swings at him with her saber and he raises his sword to block. Twirling around Karone continues to attack with several more swipes at Furio who blocked each swing, however he was being pushed back while his Sting Wingers fought with the villagers.  
"What are you doing here?"  
"Funny, I was about to ask you the same thing" answers Karone as she swings again, this time Furio ducking under the attack and then countering with his own. His sword slashed Karone across the chest and she stumbles back a few steps before recovering.  
"Why must you continue to annoy me!" shouts the enraged Furio, clearly getting sick of Karone and the Ranger constantly defeating him. Karone didn't bother to answer and instead whipped out two of her Phoenix Feathers and threw them at Furio. Exploding in his face Karone charged while Furio was disoriented and struck him with her Phoenix saber. He stumbled back and Karone came in with another attack, continually slashing at him until he finally managed to block one of her attacks. He pushed her back, aimed his sword, and fired out a bolt of red energy. The bolt hit Karone head on and sent the girl flying back through the village into a hut that broke down as she smashed through the wall.  
Groaning Karone lifted herself up only to have Furio grab her by the throat and lift her up over his head. He then turned and slammed her back down against the ground. With his sword in hand he then began to punch against Karone's helmet, anger fuelling his attack and making it stronger with each hit. It wasn't until her visor began to crack that she released how angry he actually was.  
Allowing her eyes to glow purple, Karone tapped into the combined forces of her own power and the Phoenix's. Furio was sent flying from her and Karone floated up off the ground to her feet. Her Ranger suit fading away as purple energy surrounded her body, her eyes now consumed by the purple glow. Furio tried to move, to get up and continue the fight but he was frozen still. Karone was using her telekinetic powers to stop him from moving, she'd locked his body. Raising her hand she rolled her hand inwards and Furio began to float towards her.  
"What-what's going on?" asks Furio, fear and horror think in his voice as he struggle even to get those words out. Holding him still in the air, Karone took grip of her saber with both hands. Her expressionless eyes locked with Furio's. "Please Astronema-don't-don't do this. I can help you" begged Furio trying to save his neck. But Karone didn't listen, almost as if she didn't even hear it. She raised the sword above her head and the blade began to glow a bright purple.  
"Astronema. Astronema Please!" the energy around the saber transforming now into purple flames that spiralled around the blade. Karone was now ready to finish him off, all the power of the Phoenix in the saber. All she need to do was swing the sword.  
"Karone!" shouted Furio and a gasp escaped Karone's lips as Furio dropped to the ground. As if she'd just realised what she was doing. She dropped her arms to the side of her body, hand still firmly gripping the handle of the saber. The flames and extinguished around the blade but Karone's eyes still shone bright purple.  
Then in an instant, a blink of the eye, Karone had the saber down through Furio's chest. A clean cut through his heart, blood leaking out the wound as Karone pulled the saber from the now dead Furio. Looking down at the lifeless body, Karone's eyes returned to normal. But it wasn't until the glow was fully gone did she realise what she had done. The Phoenix Saber parted from her hand and she dropped to her knees as the weapon landed on the floor with a 'clung'. Her hands covered her mouth and tears flooded into her eyes, not for Furio but for what she had done. This wasn't her, Karone would never kill. But Astronema would. Which was she, really? Astronema or Karone. Looking at Furio, blood still pumping out his chest, Karone knew deep down which one she was. She should have called the others for help, then maybe this wouldn't have happened and she wouldn't be a murderer.

Splitting up into the city of Terra Venture, the Rangers searched for hours with no sign of Leo. The searched everywhere but he was nowhere, they weren't even sure if he was still on Terra Venture anymore. With the holographic sun beginning to set, the Rangers regrouped in the city all tired and exhausted after running all over looking for Leo.  
"Any luck?" asked Kai to his friends as they approached.  
"No" said an irritated Maya.  
"Nothing" added Kendrix.  
"It's like he just disappeared" said Damon as he sat down on the ground, leaning against the corner of the building wall. A light whimpering sound coming from the ally as they continue to talk.  
"Well he's got to be somewhere, and we can't let him roam around, not in his present state of mind" said Kai as he tries to think off what they can do to possibly find Leo on the huge space station.  
"I doubt we're going to find him tonight, and without the Mega Ship we can't scan Terra Venture for him" said Kendrix with a yawn, "I think it would be best for us just to get some shut eye and try looking again tomorrow"  
"I can keep looking, you guys get some rest. You look like you need it after being up for nearly twenty-four hours" points out Maya, her jungle hunting life style from Mirinoi finally coming in handy. The whimpering form the ally now getting louder and Damon noticing it.  
"Do you guys hear that?" asked the engineer as he looks back into the alley, unable to see the source of the noise.  
"Yeah, who is it?" asked Kai, the others looking into the alley with Damon as he gets up to his feet.  
"Hello!" shouts Kendrix down the alley as the four slowly walk into the shadow of the building and towards an open dumpster. Peering around the green bin they found Leo hunched over and crying, his body curled up into a ball. "Leo?" said Kendrix, getting his attention the young man wipes his tears away and looks up to his friends, who look at him with worried eyes.  
"Stay back!" warned Leo, not wanting to hurt them again like he had before.  
"It's ok Leo" said Kendrix as she kneels down next to him. "We're here to help"  
"I-I-I don't know what came over me" said Leo apologetically. "I don't know why I said those things to Karone. Why did I push her away?" he asked his friends, but they didn't know the answer. Leo was scared and confused, his actions hadn't been his own and for some reason he'd pushed away the girl he loved. "Where is she? Where's Karone?" asked Leo, his friends looking between themselves. None of them honestly knew were the sixth Ranger had disappeared too. All they knew was that she ran off crying and took the Mega Ship with her.  
"We don't know" answers Damon, Leo starting to cry again.  
"But we'll find her Leo" promises Kai.  
"Together" adds Kendrix, putting her arm on his shoulder.  
"It's all my fault!" screamed Leo slamming his fist against the alley wall, leaving a large crack in the wall as rubble fell aside. "Sorry" Leo quickly apologized for his actions, not wanting to scare his friends off. Clearly there was still some left over anger in his system.  
"Come on. Let's get you home" said Kendrix as she helped Leo to his feet, taking one of his arms and wrapping it over her shoulders. Damon took the other side, Leo balanced between them as his friends escorted him. That night they put him to bed and while Kai, Kendrix and Damon slept Maya kept watch on Leo. She could sense that whatever was going on with him was not natural, they had witch doctors on Mirinoi which would often uses potions to help them in hunts. Maya had never used one herself as she had not been of age, but you could always tell when someone had taken a potion. And she was getting that same feeling form Leo, but he wouldn't have taken a potion of his own free will. Someone must have slipped him it. _But why? What would they have to gain?_ Then it hit Maya. This had caused them to lose Karone and tear apart the Rangers. Someone was trying to separate the Rangers and get to Karone. Or Astronema.

The villagers had managed to fight off the remaining Sting Winger, with the assistance of Karone, and now it was time for her to go. The village had gathered to see her off, even though she found it odd since she hadn't spoken to any off them personally except from the elder, she thanked them all the same. With the goodbyes said, Karone exited the village with the elder at her side.  
"So where will you go now?" asked the elder as they walk.  
"Back to Terra Venture I guess. I have friends there who are fighting Scorpius, I'm sure they could use my help" said Karone nervously, almost as if trying to convince herself that it was a good idea.  
"You don't sound too sure" points out the elder.  
"We didn't part... on the best of terms" admits Karone, biting her lower lip and looking at the ground. My boyfriend kind of said some things that hurt me, and so I ran off. I haven't spoken to them since" Karone pauses putting on a brave smile as she looks back up to the elder. "But they are my friends and I can't abandon them like I did"  
"Good, friends are very important. They emit light into each other's lives and drive off the darkness"  
"I don't know if I'd put it like that" said Karone with a light laugh at the elders words. "But I understand what you're saying. Goodbye" and Karone hops onto her Phoenix Glider, waving as she flies up towards the Mega Ship and docks.  
"Set a course for Terra Venture D.E.C.A." ordered Karone as she walked down the corridor towards the bridge. "Full speed" she adds with a smile, excited and scared at the thought of seeing her friends again. She felt the ship jerk forwards and knew that D.E.C.A. was following her orders. Stepping into the bridge Karone's smile was wiped from her face, her eyes widening in horror and her jaw dropping as she saw who was sitting on one of the control consoles.  
"Well you took your time" said the character sitting on the consol with a sly grin. "Don't you know it's rude to keep a girl waiting?" teased Astronema as she smiles her classic smile at her better side.

* * *

 _I know you're probably sick of hearing this by now, but sorry this is late.  
I'd also like to thank '_ _ **Guest**_ _' who left the review yesterday complaining about how I hadn't updated after I said I would. I take this as a complement more than a complaint, it showed me that someone cared enough to tell me that wasn't keeping my promises. That's not the man I want to be so thank you for calling me out. Hopefully I won't have an extended gap like this again, although I am going away for three weeks in between July and August but I should further along by that point and if we have internet then I'll try to update at least once while away.  
In other news, I've started a second FanFiction story, so for any Supergirl fans feel free to check it out. I should have the next chapter out within the next ten days.  
See you soon, __**RC**_ _._


	14. Shadows of Our Self

**Chapter 14: Shadows of Our Self**

It had been weeks since Karone last saw Astronema, true she'd been feeling her presence for a while but never thought that she'd manifest in this form. But she had and now the Queen of Evil was sitting opposite her on the control consol, legs crossed with her sly grin across her face, sending a shiver down Karone's back.  
"Cat got your tongue Karone?" asked Astronema with a tilt of the head. "You must have known I was coming back. I left you more than enough clues" continued Astronema as she looked over her black leather glove hand, as if examining her nails.  
"You're not real" mutters Karone to herself as she closes her eyes and tried to wish away Astronema.  
"You're not real" Astronema repeats in the same voice mockingly as she pushes of the consol.  
"You're not real" repeats Karone, Astronema again repeats it in the same irritating voice. Trying to push the darkness from her mind, Karone continued to repeat "You're not real" too herself, each time Astronema copying her. Karone continued to keep her eyes closed tightly, as if not seeing Astronema would make her disappear, while Astronema circled around her.  
Then gradually Astronema's voice faded and she stopped walking. _Was she doing it? Was she able to repress the darkness? Was Astronema gone?_ Opening her eyes she was met with the wide eyed stare of Astronema who's laugh caused Karone to stubble backwards and fall on her back.  
"Come on Karone, you know it's not that easy to get rid of me" said Astronema as she turned towards the window at the front of the bridge, walking around the consoles so that she was right up against it. Groaning as she got up to her feet, Karone rubbed her back while Astronema looked dreamily out the window. Her face hidden by her long flowing purple hair.  
"Is everything all right Karone?" asked Alpha as he walked into the room, Karone and Astronema turning to face him.  
"Afraid not Alpha. You see our dear friend Karone has started seeing things" explained Astronema as she walked over to Karone's side, gripping her by the shoulders as she continued on with her wide smile. "I think it might be time for someone else to take the wheel, maybe me?" suggested Astronema with a grin at Karone as the girl shrugged off Astronema's leather gloved hands.  
"Karone?" asked Alpha, not being able to see Astronema, all he had heard was Karone's silence.  
"I'm fine Alpha" answered Karone, looking towards Astronema, but to Alpha she was staring into space.  
"Oh don't lie Karone. You know better than that" taunted Astronema in a mother like fashion. Shaking her head Karone walked out the Bridge, leaving Alpha behind. She'd hoped to lose Astronema too, but every corner she turned there she was, smiling at her, enjoying her suffering. Taunting her at ever chance she got. Karone knew what she was trying to do. Astronema was trying to get her angry which Karone presumed would make it easier for Astronema to take over her body. So she had to stay calm and just ignore her.  
Once she got back to Terra Venture she would be able to talk to her friends and they'd help her get Astronema back under control and everything could go back to the way it was. "You really think so?" asked Astronema as the door to Karone's room opened. This time Astronema was lying on Karone's bed, her hands resting on her chest with her ankles crossed as she stared at Karone.  
"Can you just leave me alone please?" asked Karone, rubbing her head as she felt a migraine starting to come on.  
"Sure" said a perky Astronema as she jumped off the bed, "Just give me back MY body and you never have to see me again" she adds, causing Karone to sigh.  
"It's my body, not yours" she responded as she walked past Astronema and dropped onto the bed. The flight back to Terra Venture was going to take all night and they'd arrive around early morning. Karone had originally planned to spend sometime in the bridge doing odd jobs, but with Astronema bugging her she thought it best just to get an early night. Hopefully when she woke her nightmare would end.  
"We both know that's not true" said Astronema as she turned to face Karone with folded arms. "I've done far more bad things combined than you'll ever do good. WE have killed thousands, if not tens of thousands of people. You think being a 'Power Ranger' makes that all better, it doesn't. You're still evil, I'm still evil. So why not just give in now and let's have some fun?" asked Astronema, leaning down above Karone, her purple hairs dangling down and tickling Karone's features.  
"I will never let you come back" replied Karone, to which Astronema giggle and stood back up.  
"Forever's a long time Karone" Pausing a minute as she looked around Karone's room, memories filling her head of all the times she'd been trapped inside Karone's dull little minded head while she was out 'living'. "You really think they'll take you back?" asked Astronema, facing away from Karone. Listening to the silence, Astronema could her Karone's thoughts in her own head. _What's she talking about?_ Astronema smiling to herself as she heard Karone's scared and naive voice, she was too easy to manipulate at times.  
Turning back to Karone, Astronema hid her smile beneath a worried frown and concerned voice. "I mean, after you killed Furio" Astronema pauses and puts a hand across her heart, a heavy and sorrowing sigh followed. "They might think you're beyond saving" Glaring at Astronema, Karone knew she had a point but wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of admitting it to her. She then of course realised that Astronema could read her thoughts and knew what she was thinking and closed her eyes with a sigh.  
"They would never do that. They're my friends"  
"They Were your friends. Now thought..." Astronema grimaced and shook her head in disagreement with Karone's answer. The purple haired woman then dropped to her knees next to Karone's bed and folded her arms on the bed so that they acted like a pillow for her head. "You ran away Karone. You're the one that abandoned them. It wouldn't surprise me if they never wanted to see you again" Trying again to ignore her dark sides thoughts, Karone rolled over to face the wall, but Astronema continued to monolog. "Especially Leo" Astronema's words brining back all the horrible things Leo had said, causing her to run off in the first place. She could feel her insides wavering as the words passed through her, Karone's whole body fighting the urge to break down and cry at the thought of Leo. "All those mean things he said. He seemed to be done with you already" continued Astronema, a grin tugging at her lips as she saw the fright and waiver in Karone's eyes. "Why not get back at him. Show him what it's like to get hurt like that, let me help you get revenge"  
"NO!" screams Karone flipping over and diving towards Astronema. But as if she were a ghost, Karone passed right through her and clumsily collapsed on the floor. Astronema laughing as she stood over Karone, clutching her sides because she found it so funny.  
"Oh Karone. You and I are going to have a lot of fun" said Astronema as she smiled down menacingly at her good side. The good side which was slowly succumbing to the darkness and would soon be gone unless Karone could find a way to stop her. But how could she stop any enemy that lived inside her head and knew her every thought and reaction before Karone knew what was happening. The fight had only just started, and already it looked like she'd lost.

The smell of freshly baked food drifted into Damon's nose as he awoke, a delightful smile forming on his face. Following his noise blindly, he'd forgotten where he fell asleep the previous night and fell right off the couch and onto the floor with a hard thump. Groaning aloud he opened his eyes to find his face inches form Maya's, who'd been woken up by his own clumps actions.  
"Morning Maya" said Damon cheerily, but Maya wasn't as happy to see him and didn't like to be woken up so abruptly. She'd been one of the last to go to sleep after they'd brought Leo home. All five Rangers had slept in the guy's room and though they'd all drifted off not long after Leo, Maya hadn't let her guard down the whole night. It wasn't until the early hours when Kendrix woke up to go for her morning run that her friend had finally convinced her to get some sleep.  
Maya had gotten a whole two hours before Damon had landed in front of her and woke her from her peaceful dreams. Growling like a wolf at Damon, the man quickly got to his feet and scurried over to the kitchen. Once Maya stopped the wolf act and closed her eyes, Damon slowed in his scurrying and pulled himself up onto one of the chairs around the counter top. On which Kai had laid out a delicious looking breakfast for all five of them. Damon reached forwards with a drooling mouth for some of the roasting food, but was met by Kai's hand which slapped his wrist.  
"Ow" said Damon pulling his hand back from the food. "What was that for?"  
"We're waiting for Leo to get up" answered Kai as he continued to cook from the kitchen. "I'm hoping that this atmosphere will help keep him calm. I don't need you eating all the food before he wakes up"  
"Don't see why I can't have a nibble" said Damon, once again reaching for the food and being hit by Kai. "Alright, I'll wait" agrees Damon moodily.  
"Damon, if you don't shut up. I'm going to come over there and cram that whole table down your throat" moaned Maya into the floor as she tried to get back to sleep. With that said Damon fell silent and not to long later Maya drifted back to sleep.  
Following that Kendrix returned from her morning run dressed in a pink tank top with back trackie bottoms and running shoes which matched. She still had her glasses on and had clearly worked up a sweat and hunger as she headed straight for the sink to get a glass of water. After gulping half of the glass down, she then processed to take one of the still roasting pancakes and bite into it. Damon made a move to complain but then heard a growl like snore for Maya which made him stop.  
"How was your run?" asked Kai, ignoring Damon who from the corner or his eye was making faces, annoyed that Kendrix had been allowed to eat and he hadn't.  
"Good thanks" said Kendrix biting into the pancake, right in front of Kai who said nothing. Annoyed and hungry, Damon pushed his friends' opinions and requests aside and went for the pancakes. Grabbing two in one hand he rammed the soft warm floppy disc into his mouth and biting down before anyone could stop him. Ripping at it like a mad man or wolf, Damon tore apart the pancake before crunching it in his mouth and swallowing it near whole.  
Stopping when he saw Kai and Kendrix staring at him, Damon quickly noticed it wasn't him they were staring at. Turning slowly he looked over his shoulder to see that Maya was up and standing right behind him. In his munching furry on the pancake, Damon had accidently sent a plate of cut tomatoes flying across the room where they landed on Maya. Two slices of tomato still sliding down her face leaving a trial of red juice like a slug.  
"Damon..." growled Maya who's eyes had turned red with rage. She grabbed him by the neck and was about to pull him from the chair when they heard Leo groan and awake. Freezing, they all watched as Leo got up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. However when he looked out across the room from the top bunk he was surprised to see that Maya was in the process of attacking Damon.  
"Is everything alright?" asked Leo, to which his friends all replied in unison.  
"Yes" they all answered despite the fact that Maya still had her arms wrapped around Damon's throat.  
"Ok" said Leo as he climbed off his bed, while Maya released her grip on Damon. For the sake of Leo she had let him go, not wanting her friend to get angry again but she was planning on getting Damon back for what he'd done. Passing Leo she smiled at him as she climbed into the middle bunk and attempted to get some more sleep while Leo joined the rest of his friends in the kitchen. "Smells good" commented Leo as he sits down next to Damon and takes a bit of everything to eat. Kai and Kendrix sit themselves down opposite Damon and Leo and the four dig into the warm morning breakfast.  
"So Leo, how you feeling?" asked Damon while they eat.  
"Better. Less angry, but still a little weird" admits Leo as he munched on a strip of bacon.  
"Want to go and see a doctor?" asked Kendrix, Leo shaking his head in response.  
"Nah, if I act out again then it would probably be a good idea but I'm hoping that after a few days I'll be back to normal" said Leo with a smile to Kendrix, letting her know that he appreciated her concern.  
"Well in any case, I think you should take an off day. We don't want you exploding at some three year old because he kicked you in ankle" said Kai.  
"That only happened once and I maintain that it hurt worse than some of the monsters we've gone up against" protests Leo with a smile, making the rest of his friends laugh with him.  
"That's not how Karone told it" said Kendrix and at the mention of her name Leo's smile faded, as did the others. "Sorry" apologized Kendrix, Leo nodding to show he accepted the apology. He just missed her, he loved her and he'd been the one to drive her away. It was what made him so angry, that he'd lashed out at her, his best friend and the closest person to him. He just wanted to know where she was and that she was ok, but none of the Rangers knew where Karone was or if they'd ever see her again. The rest of the breakfast was in silence, which suited Maya as it made getting back to sleep a lot easier.

Walking off the Mega Ship, Karone found that Astronema was waiting outside for her. Rolling her eyes, Karone continued on, trying to ignore her as she walked out the hanger where she'd parked the Mega Ship. With Astronema following her, Karone walked through the twisting corridors which she still remembered how to navigate and exited into the open streets of Terra Venture. Taking in the holographic sun above her and the artificial heat that was filling the air, Karone felt oddly at home.  
"It's going to be fun destroying this place" said Astronema as she stepped up to Karone's side, causing Karone's homecoming smile to vanish. In the sort time that Astronema had been back in her life, the purple haired witch had made every moment a living hell for Karone.  
"Do you have to follow me everywhere?" asked Karone.  
"Well it's that, or formulate a plan to take over the universe. You're choice?" teased Astronema smiling slyly at Karone sighed and walked off, leaving a giggling Astronema. Popping up again as Karone turned a corner Astronema fell into step with her, the light and the dark walking side by side through the streets of Terra Venture. "So where are we going?" asked Astronema, even though she already knew the answer. Karone remained quiet, determined not to play Astronema's little mind games and let her convince her not to do what she should do. Unfortunately, Astronema didn't need Karone to speak in order to have a conversation. With their minds linked she was able to read Karone's thoughts when Astronema asked her questions, so she got a response one way or the other from the young woman. "I'm not sure they'll want to see you" hummed Astronema in a high pitch irritating singing voice.  
"Their my friends, of course they'll want to see me" responded Karone with a glare.  
"If you say so, but let's just remember what happened last time you saw me and I was around your friends" said Astronema, causing Karone to stop dead in her tracks. Astronema had gone a few steps ahead before noticing that Karone had stopped and turned back to face the wide eyed girl. "Oh I'm sorry, had you forgotten that I got out and attacked your friends. And since you killed Furio it should be that much easier to do it this time. One slip up, one wrong thought, one wrong action and I might slide on in and kill them all" elaborated Astronema with a sinister grin, watching as fear gripped Karone she knew that Astronema had won.  
"You win" mutters Karone as she turns and walks off in the opposite direction of her friends' apartments.  
"Well of course I won" said Astronema, now speaking from inside Karone's head. "The only question is how long until I win back my body?"  
"I won't let that happen" said Karone as she made her way towards the mountain dome. She would sooner die than let Astronema back out into the world, and she knew just who to ask to make sure that that was what would happen.

Meanwhile back at the apartment, the guys were cleaning up the breakfast while Kendrix sat on the couch reading a magazine and Maya continued to catch up on her sleep. Leo had offered to clean up once they'd finished, but Kendrix had said it would be too much for one man so had volunteered Kai and Damon to help. They'd set aside some leftovers for Maya when she woke up, but currently she was snoring away like sleeping beauty and showing no signs of waking up.  
That was until the guys approached finishing their clean up and Damon's morpher went off. He looked at it and gasped, stopping what he was doing and rushing over to his laptop. He typed quickly and the others, noticing his alert mind set, gathered around him.  
"What is it Damon?" asked Kai looking over his shoulder with Leo beside him while Kendrix looked over the other shoulder.  
"I linked my morpher to the motion sensors in the hanger where we stored the Mega Ship so I'd know if anyone found the Mega Ship" explained Damon as he typed.  
"So, the Mega Ship isn't there anymore" pointed out Leo.  
"Yes, unless it's came back and that's what tripped the motion sensors" said Damon, grabbing everyone's attention, all looking to the screen as he brought up the security footage. They could all see that the Mega Ship had returned but that wasn't what they were concerned with. Waiting a moment the ramp to the Mega Ship lowered and then she stepped out, Karone walked off in strides. She was back, Karone had returned to Terra Venture.  
"It's her" said Kendrix in amazement and surprise.  
"She came back" added Damon with a smile on his face. Behind them though, Leo's face went hard. It didn't take him long to decide what he was going to do, grabbing his jacket and putting it on Leo headed for the door.  
"Where do you think you're going?" asked Kai as Leo opened the door.  
"I have to talk to her, it's my fault she left" explained Leo before he stormed out.  
"Leo wait up!" Kai called after him as he ran after him. Leaving Damon and Kendrix behind, Damon closed his laptop while Kendrix shock Maya awake, knowing she'd tear off Damon's head if he tried to wake her.  
"Maya... Maya wake up" said Kendrix softly as Maya awoke, Damon standing behind Kendrix for safety. Groaning as she woke, the young woman sat herself up in the bed, rubbing her eyes.  
"What's going on?" asked the half awake Maya.  
"Karone's back" answered Kendrix and Maya jumped out the bed, now fully alert.  
"Seriously? Well let's go" said the suddenly energetic Maya as she runs past her friends. Running after the Yellow Ranger, Kendrix and Damon joined her, Leo and Kai as they searched for Karone, having no idea where she was now.

Climbing up the mountain, Karone was beginning to feel breathless as she powered on up the steep slope. This had been the second mountain she'd climbed in hopes of finding who she was looking for, the person who could kill her if Astronema got in control. She wasn't even sure if she'd find him but she figured that he had to rest somewhere, and were better than atop a mountain where you can see someone coming from a mile away.  
"You're looking a bit tired Karone. Are you sure you don't want to stop and have a rest?" asked Astronema who was perched on a rock up a head of Karone. Sitting on the edge of the large bolder, Astronema swing her legs out in front of her as she watched the exhausted Karone climb the mountain.  
"I'm fine" replied Karone, but was trying to convince herself rather than Astronema. Not only had she skipped breakfast that morning but she had been going none stop since she arrived back on Terra Venture, searching all over for the person that would hopefully help her.  
"You know there's no guarantee that he'll help you" pointed out Astronema as Karone dragged herself past the purpled hair villainess. A gap suddenly filled Karone's stomach at the thought that her evil self was right, that he wouldn't help and would let Astronema run free. After all Karone really didn't know much about him, he was a mystery in many ways. But he was her best shot, none of her friends could do it and she couldn't get anyone evil to do it because if they knew why then they'd run in fear of Astronema's wrath.  
"I won't know unless I try" said Karone stubbornly as she continues on, leaving Astronema behind until she inevitable appeared again. Continuing up for another mile, Karone slowly approached the top, with Astronema once again reappearing at her side and joining her at walking pace.  
"So what are you going to say to him?" asked Astronema nosily as they walked.  
"To kill me if you come out" snarled Karone.  
"Why not get him to just kill you now, unless... you don't want to die" said Astronema with a grin.  
"Of course I don't want to die!" snapped back Karone, "But it's better than letting you back out into the universe"  
"Or maybe you don't want to die because you want me to come back" suggested Astronema with a mischievous smile and twinkle in her eye. "You like the dark side, you want me back. I am, after all, the best version of you"  
"But you're not me" retorted Karone, coming to a stop and turning to the purple haired devil. "Don't you get it. No matter what you say, no matter what you do, you're not getting back out. And no matter what I think or do, none of it makes me anything like you. We are two different entities. I'm good and you're bad"  
"That's just a matter of perceptive Karone. To me, evil is good and good is evil. You know about Yin and Yang, that good cannot exist without evil without good. I will always be a part of you, just like you'll be a part of me. Only difference is I know how to push you, deep, deep down, so that I never have to hear you again. And do you want to know why I can do that? It's because I'm the stronger half, I'm the real you and that's why I will always win in our little quarrels. Because when you let your true self out. That's ME" finished with her monolog, Astronema took a deep breath and recomposed herself, straightening up and putting on the sly twofaced grin she always wore.  
A moment of tense silence pasted before the two as they stared at each other, each waiting for the other to speak first or give some hint as to how they felt. Catching her breath Karone thought about how she could respond, but everything she thought off she knew Astronema could twist and turn it back on her. So with that in mind Karone remained quiet, gathered herself, and continued on up to the peak of the mountain.  
Walking up she found who she was looking for, looking out over the valley below he stood at the edge of the cliff. The Magna Defender. Having fought alongside him once before, Karone felt like she knew him better than most people. He hadn't noticed her yet and had his back to her as he looked out over the cliff side, his arms folded and his cape flowing behind him.  
"Oh dark and mysterious? Good replacement for Leo" comments Astronema causing Karone to snarl at her subconscious.  
"He's not replacing Leo" said Karone, alerting the Magna Defender to her presence. Spinning around swiftly to face Karone, the Magna Defender went for his sword and pulled it out, ready to attack. Putting her hands up in peace, Karone tried to explains but the Magna Defender was on her too quickly. Swinging with his sword, Karone leaned back avoiding the attack and then stepped back to avoid the second swing.  
"Wait! Please! I just want to talk!" shouted Karone as she danced around the Magna Defender, avoiding all of his sword swings. All while Astronema watched from the sidelines and laughed, enjoying the turn of events that had befallen Karone.  
Coming to the decision that a good offence was also a good defence, Karone twirled around and lifted her foot high catching the Magna Defender on the side of his helmet. Stumbling back the Magna Defender recomposed himself and aimed his sword at Karone, who struck a fighting stance, ready to defend herself.  
"I don't want to fight" pleaded Karone, but the Defender didn't listen and swung at her. Dodging the attack, Karone grabbed hold of the Magna Defender's sword in an attempt to get it away from him. The two tussled back and forth until the Defender got the upper hand and pushed Karone off. Lying on the ground defencelessly, Karone watched as the Magna Defender went to cut her down with his sword.  
"Let me help" said Astronema stepping closer to Karone and touching her shoulder. A sudden flash of purple later and the Magna Defender was on his back. Astonished by what had happened, Karone looked to Astronema who was holding her shoulder with a devious smile and purple glowing eyes. Much like the ones Karone currently had.  
It then hit her that whenever her Phoenix powers acted up or started uncontrollably it must have been Astronema. The evil witch had had control of her powers all this time and was merely allowing Karone to use them when she wanted to. Looking down to Karone, Astronema smiled, knowing that she'd just realised what she had been doing all along.  
Vanishing from sight, Karone was now alone with the Magna Defender and got up to her feet. Approaching the Magna Defender cautiously, she reached out to help him up and surprisingly he allowed her to. While he steadied himself, Karone picked up his sword and handed back over to the Magna Defender who holstered it. He nodded in thanks, but said nothing.  
"Sorry about that" said Karone with a friendly smile. The Magna Defender said nothing, shrugging of his defeat like every tough guy.  
"I just wanted to talk" explained Karone, brushing aside her hair which blew into her face.  
"Then talk" said the Magna Defender as he folded his arms and looked at her, listening. Though it was hard to tell if he really was with his helmet on and visor down. Gathering her thoughts together Karone prepared herself to explain her situation to the Defender.  
"Do you know who I am?" asked Karone.  
"You're Karone" answered the Magna Defender.  
"That's not completely true..." this caught the attention of the Magna Defender. "I was also once Astronema" the mention of the name caused the Magna Defender to quake with fear and instinctively reach for his sword. "But that wasn't the real me!" exclaimed Karone, quickly putting the Magna Defender at ease. "I was kidnapped at a young age and brought up to be evil. Now I'm worried that the Astronema might come back, take over my body again" explained Karone, fear gripping her chest as she admitted this not only to the Magna Defender but herself.  
"And what do you want me to do about it?" asked the black armoured man, Karone feeling his eyes on her. His hand still gripping the handle of his weapon.  
"I want you to make sure that that doesn't happen. If it looks like she's going to gain control or if she does, I need you to kill me" her words caught the Defender of guard and he fell speechless.  
"Why not ask your friends?" questioned the Magna Defender once he got a hold of himself.  
"I can't trust them to go through with it if I needed them too" answered Karone.  
"Why would you want them too?"  
"I don't want Astronema getting back out. And if she does then I'd be trapped in the back of her mind and be forced to watch as she destroyed everything and everyone I care about. If she gets out I don't want to be saved. I just want her to be dead" said Karone with tears welling up in her eyes, fearing that what she was asking the Magna Defender to do might actually need to be done for the good of the universe.  
"I'll do it" said the Magna Defender, conveying no emotion while he hid behind his thick black armour. Smiling at him Karone thanked him and sat herself down on a nearby rock, the Magna Defender following her over and standing next to her while she wept.

Meanwhile, the other Rangers had entered the mountain dome of Terra Venture, following what security footage they had found of Karone. Sadly though they couldn't access the security to the mountain dome without raising questions as to why they wanted to, so now they had to look for her the old fashioned way.  
"Why'd you think she came here?" asked Damon as the five entered the spacious dome with looming mountains ahead.  
"I'll be sure to ask her when we find her" said Kai with a smirk at his friend.  
"Do you think we should split up?" asked Leo.  
"No, I think it'd be best if we stick together" said Kai quickly.  
"Translated, you don't trust me" said Leo with a light smile.  
"Can you blame us, you did stab me remember" pointed out Maya, still feeling some pain in her chest from the stab wound that had healed quickly thanks to her powers. "Plus last time you saw Karone you went all crazy"  
"Perhaps it's her that caused it" suggested Kendrix. "Not intentionally of course, just when you see her, that's what sets you off"  
"So we'd rather find her together encase that is what happens and then we can keep you under control" added Kai.  
"Plus, who knows how she'll react to seeing you" said Damon, everyone stopping and glaring at him. Knowing his innocent joke had been taken the wrong way Damon looked shamefully at the ground before feeling Leo's hand on his back. Looking up he saw his friend smiling and knew it was ok.  
"He does have a point. We don't know who she'll react to seeing us, so let's take it slow when we find her" said Leo, the others nodding in agreement.  
"That's if you find her!" shouted a monster as it jumped out in front of them, the Rangers instinctively getting into fighting stances. This new monster was dressed in a red robe with long white sleeves, baggy red and white stripped trousers with matching white shoes. His hands were covered in white gloves and atop his head was a golden squid like hat with two long tails that trailed down to his waist. His face was grey looking with pointy chin and features that resembled a Chinese man.  
"Who are you?" asked Kendrix as they all took a step back from the new monster.  
"I am the Wisewizard" the monster introduced himself with a bow.  
"You don't seem as intimidating as Furio's normal monsters" commented Leo with a grin.  
"Furio is dead. Cut down by one of you lot. Scorpius has sent me to get revenge!" shrieked the Wisewizard as he pulled out a notepad. With a quill in hand, he quickly scribbled something thing down and then ripped the paper from the book, throwing it at the Rangers. Landing on the ground in front of them, they were confused as to its purpose, all it had on it was a Kanji symbol. Then before any of them could ask aloud, the paper exploded and sent them flying back.  
"Ok, going to admit... I didn't see that coming" said Damon as he got back up with the other Rangers.  
"Ready?" asked Leo aloud.  
"Ready!" replied the others.  
"Go, Galactic!" shout the five Rangers in unison and then they transform into their Ranger suits. Drawing their Quasar Sabers, the Rangers charged at the Wisewizard as Sting Winger teleported in around him.  
"Attack!" ordered the Wisewizard and the Sting Wingers ran forwards to meet the Rangers in battle. After several weeks of fighting Sting Wingers the Rangers had begun finding it easy to fight them off unless they were in huge numbers. But the Wisewizard only had a handful of them and the Rangers were cutting through them like second nature.  
Seeing his army getting destroyed so easily was making the Wisewizard feel uneasy. He quickly wrote something on his notepad and then repeated it on another four pages before ripping out the five pages. Holding them in his hand, he waited for a chance to strike while the Rangers danced around the battlefield, slashing and hacking down the Sting Wingers three at a time.  
He spotted an opening with Kai as he swings his saber and knocks down two Sting Wingers. Taking his chance the Wisewizard threw one of the pieces of paper and it caught Kai on the chest. Looking down at the paper now sticking to his chest, Kai went to remove it but was then hit with an electric shock causing him to drop down to the ground paralyzed.  
"Kai!" shouted Kendrix as she ran to assist him, now also getting hit with one of the Wisewizard's notes. Continuing to run, Kendrix was hit with the same paralysis spell as Kai and dropped down, skidding across the ground to Kai's side. As for the other three Rangers, they had grouped up as the Sting Wingers surrounded them. But then bug army suddenly parted allowing the Wisewizard a straight path to the remaining Rangers. Before they could react to the sudden change in the enemy's plan, the Wisewizard hit them with the last of his notes and the three dropped down in a static frenzy.  
"Yes!" shouted the Wisewizard as he jumped up slightly, the Sting Wingers also buzzing in joy. This was the first time in a long time that they'd actually had the Rangers defeated and trapped. Truthfully the Wisewizard hadn't expected his first encounter with the Rangers to go this well, he'd thought he would have been sent running after the first battle and would have been lucky to get a second chance. However he'd defeated them, so easily that he couldn't help but feel he was missing something.  
"Wait a minute... There's only five Rangers here! Where's the other one" shrieked the Wisewizard as he looked around frantically for the sixth Ranger. "Well don't just stand there you idiots. Go and find her!" ordered the Wisewizard, to which the Sting Wingers got to work, searching the nearby grounds. If she was nearby then the Sting Wingers would find her and if not, then he could focus on making the other Rangers suffer while he waited for her to show up.

Meanwhile in the mountain tops, the Magna Defender had decided to move from the peck and was walking down the mountain with Karone behind him. He hadn't asked her to follow him or assist him in anyway, but she had decided to follow him all the same. They were about halfway down the mountain when the Magna Defender finally spoke to her, no that she'd been speaking much either.  
"Is there a reason you're following me?" asked the Magna Defender coming to a stop, his hand resting on the handle of his sword as he turned to face Karone.  
"Not really" answered Karone as she stopped opposite the Magna Defender, half expecting him to attack her again. However he did not attack her, only snort and continue on with Karone behind him. "Where are we going?" asked Karone in an attempt to keep the conversation alive.  
"I'm getting off this mountain. I don't really care where you're going" answered the Magna Defender sourly.  
"Why are you so angry?" Karone's question caused the Magna Defender to suddenly stop, as if contemplating on life. She knew something bad had happened to him, just like it had to her, people that go through life changing events tend to have a sixth sense for others who've gone through a similar experience. Even before she became Astronema she had suffered in losing her brother and parents, maybe that was what drove her to evil when it opened its arms to her.  
"I lost someone" answered the Magna Defender, suddenly opening up.  
"Who?" asked Karone, her voice quiet as if it were a great secret.  
"My... my son" answered the Magna Defender, gripping his sword tightly as the memory of his son flashed before his eyes. "I swore I'd avenge him... at any coast"  
"Sounds like you might have a regret in that statement" comment Karone, noticing the gap in his sentence.  
"I had to do something I wasn't proud off" admitted the Magna Defender. Before either of them could continue, Karone's morpher beeped and both of them looked to the device on her wrist. Pressing some of the buttons on her morpher, Karone discovered it was a distress signal from her friends.  
"My friends are in trouble" said Karone, looking to the Magna Defender. Turning to leave, he took two steps before stopping as Karone called out to him. "Please" he didn't turn to face her, but stopped to listen. "They're my friends. Will you help me?" she asked, but he didn't answer for quite awhile. Eventually though he turned to look at her and nodded.  
"But this is a onetime deal. After this the only thing I'm required to do is kill you if Astronema comes back" said the Magna Defender with a pointing finger, to which Karone smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Where is she?" snarled the Wisewizard as he grabbed Damon by the shirt and pulled him towards his face. The Wisewizard's Sting Wingers had been searching for nearly an hour and had found no sign of the sixth Ranger, this was causing the Wisewizard to worry. The longer the sixth Ranger remained hidden the better chance she'd show up and save her friends.  
"I don't know?" answered Damon, the Wisewizard throwing him back down to the ground with force and moving on to Maya who sat next to him. Grabbing her in the same fashion as he had Damon he asked the same question.  
"Where is she?" to which Maya spat back in his face. Releasing her and stepping back, Maya went to attack the monster but was quickly grabbed and pulled back by two Sting Wingers. "You stupid girl" growled the Wisewizard as he punched her in the chest, the Sting Wingers letting go and allowing her to fall to the ground.  
"Maya!" exclaimed her friends in horror at her friends poor treatment.  
"Shut up!" snapped the Wisewizard at the Rangers.  
"Why don't you make me" retorted Leo, quickly silenced by a Sting Winger whacking him on the back of the head.  
"I could destroy you here and now if I wanted to!"  
"Then why not take of the cuffs and fight me!" shouted Leo as he got up, instantly being pushed back down by the Sting Wingers behind him.  
"You clearly don't know who you're talking to. I'm in charge and if I want you dead then you Die!" shouted the Wisewizard, leaning into Leo's face. Taking a step back he nodded to the two Sting Wingers behind him and both grabbed Leo forcing him up to his feet. Pushing him along towards a large rock they stretched him out by pulling his arms in opposite directions, after untying him. Quickly the Wisewizard jotted something down on his notepad and then ripped out two pages. Throwing one at each of Leo's wrists, the paper stuck to his wrist acting like binding restraints against the rock. Tugging at his wrists, Leo found the paper to be stronger than steel and was unable to move from the rock he'd been tied up against.  
As the two Sting Wingers left Leo's side, the Wisewizard scribbled something on his notepad again. Again ripping off two pages, he threw one to the side and everyone watched as it exploded in the air as it hit the ground. Gasping as they watched the explosion, the other Rangers watched as the Wisewizard held out the second piece of paper towards Leo. "And I want you dead, so you die" snarled the Wisewizard with a sly grin at Leo who tried to break free of the bindings, frantically trying to escape his impending demise.  
The other Rangers try to get up and stop the Wisewizard, screaming at him to stop, but the Sting Wingers hold them back while the Wisewizard tauntingly aims his piece of paper at Leo. Slowly moving his hand back and forth, flecking his wrist, he finally lifts his hand back and throws the page through the air straight at Leo. Cutting through the air with his friends' screams behind it, Leo closed his eyes as the paper approached only for his ears to then fill with the sound of a laser blast.  
Opening his eyes he found a small smock cloud dispersing in front of him. Someone had shot the paper out of the air just before it could hit him. "What?!" shouted the Wisewizard in annoyance as he looked around for Leo's saviour.  
But it was Kendrix who spotted him first, shouting as she pointed up towards hill ahead of them. Everyone turned and looked to see the Magna Defender at the top of the hill with his blaster in hand, giving it a pump as he reloaded and aimed it down towards the Sting Wingers. Firing off several shots, he took out the Sting Wingers surrounding the four Rangers without harming them. "NO!" shrieked the Wisewizard as he wrote something else down and ripped out the page. "Take this!" he shouts throwing the paper towards the vulnerable Rangers, but before it could connect it exploded in the air after being hit by a purple feather. Looking over the Wisewizard saw the Karone had appeared nearby in her purple Ranger suit with her saber out. Swiping forwards, the Wisewizard stumbled backwards to avoid the attack and fell onto his back.  
"You know for a 'Wise' wizard, you're not that smart are you?" mocked Karone as she balanced the blade of her weapon on her shoulder, watching as the monster before her scurried along the ground away from her.  
Skidding down the hill towards Leo, the Magna Defender watched as the four other Rangers dodged incoming Sting Winger attacks while Karone attacked the Wisewizard. The Phoenix Ranger was too preoccupied with the main monster to notice that her friends were defenceless against the Sting Wingers as their arms were still tied behind their backs and they couldn't morph. Rushing to Leo, he pulled his sword out the back of his blaster and sliced the restraints off Leo's wrists and freed the young man.  
"Thanks" said Leo as he rubbed his wrists.  
"No time, come on" ordered the Magna Defender, leading Leo towards his friends to help them against the Sting Wingers.  
Meanwhile the Wisewizard was now back on his feet and fighting Karone, throwing his notes at her as quickly as he could write them, which turned out to be very fast. His hands moved along in a blur as he wrote the note, ripped it out, and threw it at Karone all before starting again and doing the whole process three times in a second. Flipping to the side in cartwheel form, Karone continued on doing three full rotations in ordered to avoid the explosive paper being thrown at her.  
Coming to a stop she was hit in the chest with a piece of paper knocking her to the floor. Spotting two more pieces coming her way, Karone rolled over, pushed herself up and pulled out a set of Phoenix feather to counter the notes heading towards her. Throwing the feathers, they collided in the air with the paper causing a smock cloud to form in between Karone and the Wisewizard. Continuing to throw paper into the smock, the Wisewizard didn't let up. It then came as a shock to him when Karone came through the cloud, lunging forwards with her saber and only just missing him as he jumped back to avoid the attack. Throwing up another note as Karone swung her saber, her blade caught the note and sent her skidding back as it released a pulse wave. Next thing she knew two more notes came her way and she only just managed to avoid them with a skill full jump and roll in the air. This monster was starting to prove more difficult than she'd expected him to be.  
Back with Leo and the Magna Defender, the two were charging through the group of Sting Wingers to get to the other Rangers. As the Magna Defender sliced through the bug like warriors, Leo got a head and leaped over the rest to get to his friends. Heading for Kai first, the Blue Ranger turned his back to Leo who ripped of the ropes binding him before the two got to work free the rest of the team. All while the Magna Defender finished off the Sting Wingers that had know lost focus on the Rangers and turned on the black warrior that was defeating them with ease.  
With the last of the Sting Wingers having fallen to the Magna Defender's Karone was about ready to finish of the Wisewizard, dodging another note that was heading her way. Then suddenly the paper stopped coming and Karone looked to her opponent to find that he was out of ammo. He'd used up all the paper in his notebook and had nothing left to throw at Karone.  
Sauntering up to the Wisewizard, twirling her sword as she walked, Karone couldn't help but grin behind her visor. It had been all too easy to defeat this guy, all she had had to do was wait him out until he ran out of paper. Karone had been joking when she referred to him being stupid, but it was starting to look like he really was.  
"No please!" begged the Wisewizard as Karone approached.  
"Say good night" said Karone, lifting her saber over her shoulder and getting ready to finish him off. But then she froze. Thoughts suddenly racing through her head as everything around her then froze in turn, like time it's self was stopping and the only thing that was moving was her mind. _What if this was what Astronema wanted her to do? What if every time she killed, whether it was good or bad, she gave Astronema more power. A greater chance of taking over and controlling._ Beginning to question every decision she'd made since arriving on Terra Venture, she didn't notice that the Wisewizard was making a run.  
Snapping from her thoughts, she came back to her senses and pulled out a Phoenix feather, ready to finish him off with that. But then she began questioning herself again when she spotted Astronema lurking out the corner of her eye.  
"Go on. You know he has to die" said Astronema who stood at her side with a sly grin, knowing that whatever Karone did, she'd win in some way. "He hurt your friends, he deserves the same fate as Furio" said Astronema, gasping as she mentioned Furio and covering her mouth in an embarrassed like fashion. "Oh sorry. I know that's still a sensitive issue for you" teased the purple haired witch. Karone was running out of time, the Wisewizard was getting out of range and soon she'd lose him. "Just think about it" continued Astronema, leaning in closely, "All the people he'll kill just because you let him go. Then again it might not be as many as I'd kill if I got out, but still, all those deaths will be on you're hands. You could have stopped him, saved little Timmy or Lucy or whoever it is he-" suddenly stopping at the sound of laser fire, Karone and Astronema looked over to see that the Magna Defender had fired his blaster. He'd shot the Wisewizard and destroyed him.  
"Damn... why'd he have to ruin the fun" moaned Astronema as she faded away from Karone's view.  
"Why'd you do that? Karone had him in her sights?" asked Leo from beside the Magna Defender. The black armoured warrior turned to Karone, whose Ranger suit faded away in a flash of purple. He knew, he knew that she'd hesitated even if her friends didn't.  
"She was taking to long" lied the Magna Defender turning back to Leo before marching off past Karone.  
"Thank you" said Karone as he passed.  
"Don't let it happen again" snapped back the Magna Defender in a low voice so the other Rangers didn't hear him. Continuing on, he vanished from sight over the hill, leaving the five Rangers and Karone alone.  
Turning to her friends, she didn't know what to do. _Should she go over and talk or just leave?_ Eventually she got her answer when Leo took a step towards her and she instantly took a step back. Then and there she and the others knew she wasn't ready to return to them.  
"Karone-" started Leo.  
"-I'm sorry" interrupted Karone, cutting him off. "But I'm not ready to come back. Some things happened while I was away and... I just can't come back to you guys yet" said Karone turning to leave. Taking a few steps away from her friends she stopped when she heard Leo's voice.  
"We'll wait" he said and Karone felt herself begin to choke up. Not wanting to seem weak in front of her friends, she continued on in the direction of the Magna Defender before vanishing from the Rangers sights.  
Unknown to them Astronema was standing in front of them as Karone walked up the hill.  
"Don't worry Rangers. She'll be back soon, and when she comes back... That's when the fun begins" said Astronema as he face light up with all the evil plans she had in store for the Rangers and Karone.


End file.
